Academic content,research productivity,and tenure

This study examines the influence of a Finance doctoral program’s academic content on the research productivity of the graduates at the time of the tenure decision. The results of this investigation show that a Finance program’s academic content has no influence on the total number of publications of program graduates, but finds a significant relationship between academic content and graduate’s records of publications in top finance journals by the time of the tenure evaluation. More precisely, doctoral programs requiring more mathematically oriented classes such as Continuous Time Finance and/or Stochastic Calculus produce graduates who have a better record of publication in top finance journals at the time of tenure than those graduating from programs without these requirements.     

The effect of foreign ownership on SMEs performance: An efficiency analysis perspective

This paper uses both Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and Free Disposal Hull (FDH) models in order to determine different performance levels in a sample of 353 foreign equities operating in the Greek manufacturing sector. Particularly, convex and non-convex models are used alongside with bootstrap techniques in order to determine the effect of foreign ownership on SMEs’ performance. The study illustrates how the recent developments in efficiency analysis and statistical inference can be applied when evaluating performance issues. The analysis among the foreign equities indicates that the levels of foreign ownership have a positive effect on SMEs’ performance.     

THE BENEFITS AND COSTS OF MONETARY UNION IN SOUTHERN AFRICA: A CRITICAL SURVEY OF THE LITERATURE

Abstract.  With the 14 members of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) having set the objective of adopting a common currency for the year 2018, an expanding empirical literature has emerged evaluating the benefits and costs of a common-currency area in Southern Africa. This paper reviews that literature, focusing on two categories of studies: (1) those that assume that a country's characteristics are invariant to the adoption of a common currency and (2) those that assume that a monetary union alters an economy's structure, resulting in trade creation and credibility gains. The literature reviewed suggests that a relatively small group of countries, typically including South Africa, satisfies the criteria necessary for monetary unification. The literature also suggests that, in a monetary union comprising all SADC countries and a regional central bank that sets monetary policy to reflect the average economic conditions (e.g. fiscal balances) in the region, the potential losses (i.e. higher inflation) from giving up an existing credible national central bank, a relevant consideration for South Africa, could outweigh any potential benefits of trade creation resulting from a common currency.     

MULTIVARIATE METHODS FOR MONITORING STRUCTURAL CHANGE

Detection of structural change is a critical empirical activity, but continuous ‘monitoring’ for changes in real time raises well‐known econometric issues that have been explored in a single series context. If multiple series co‐break then it is possible that simultaneous examination of a set of series helps identify changes with higher probability or more rapidly than when series are examined on a case‐by‐case basis. Some asymptotic theory is developed for maximum and average CUSUM detection tests. Monte Carlo experiments suggest that these both provide an improvement in detection relative to a univariate detector over a wide range of experimental parameters, given a sufficiently large number of co‐breaking series. This is robust to a cross‐sectional correlation in the errors (a factor structure) and heterogeneity in the break dates. We apply the test to a panel of UK price indices. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A Two‐Stage Double Bootstrap DEA: The Case of the Top 25 European Football Clubs' Efficiency Levels

This paper analyzes how European football clubs' current value and debt levels influence their performance. The Simar and Wilson (J Econometrics, 136: 31–64, 2007) procedure is used to bootstrap the data envelopment analysis scores in order to establish the effect of football clubs' current value and debt levels on their obtained efficiency scores. The results reveal that football clubs' current value levels have a negative influence on their performances, indicating that football clubs' high value does not ensure higher performance. At the same time, the empirical evidence suggests that football clubs' debt levels do not influence their efficiency levels. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Networks and linkages among firms and organizations in the Ottawa-region technology cluster

This paper reports on a study of the networking and linkage practices of technology and non-technology firms within the Ottawa cluster. The work seeks to understand how and why particular patterns of networks and linkages evolve and it examines empirically the usage and value of networks and linkages. Previous work argues that technology firms need to be relatively more adept at developing external relationships in order to be successful than do non-technology based companies. This work, however, finds that technology firms exhibit fewer linkages than non-technology based companies do within the Ottawa cluster. The research suggests that the vitality of the Ottawa cluster could be further enhanced through the promotion of additional networking and linkages among regional firms. A key implication for management practice is that CEOs of technology-based firms should work towards establishing and maintaining additional valued relationships.     

Performance Contracting In Practice: Experience and lessons from the water sector in Ghana

This article provides some insights into how performance contracting works in practice in a developing country context, using the case of the Ghana Water and Sewerage Corporation (GWSC). Performance contracting has been a useful instrument for restructuring the state-owned enterprises (SOE) sector in Ghana, and the GWSC has made some moderate improvements since its introduction. However, the article highlights some of the institutional constraints and capacity issues that reformers will have to pay attention to, including overstretched capacity of the monitoring agency, a weak information management system and inconsistent compliance to contract by government. The findings also highlight the difficulty of separating politics from operational/management issues, especially in politically sensitive public services, yet performance contracting relies on such separation to be effective. Also it shows how informal behaviour undermines the formality of performance contracting.     

Emerging managerial competencies of professionals in the Tanzanian construction industry

The managerial competencies required by professionals in the construction industry in Tanzania to operate effectively in a business environment which is changing as a result of a transition from a socialist to a free-enterprise economy, economic liberalization, globalization and regionalization are explored through a qualitative study. The study reveals that local Tanzanian construction firms are finding it difficult to compete with foreign companies for projects. This is mainly because Tanzanian professionals lack the competencies required to compete and manage projects in a liberalized market economy.

The study thus highlights the need for Tanzanian construction professionals to acquire a better grasp of both occupational and organizational competencies. In this respect, it is suggested that they need post-experience training in order to acquire the competencies required to function successfully in a commercial environment.     

Corporate hyperlink network relationships in global corporate social responsibility system

This study analyzed the hyperlink (co-link) network structure among companies in global Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) system. This study measured network variables such as density and centrality, including degree centrality, eigenvector centrality, closeness, and betweenness. The results indicated that European companies had relatively central roles in the global CSR system. In addition the higher performing companies are more active their CSR practices. Also, the results revealed that the industrial type of companies was not significantly associated with its CSR practices.