Exchange rate fluctuations,firm size,and export behavior: an empirical investigation

In this paper, we examine how changes in the exchange rate and its volatility affect the export behavior of manufacturing firms. We also investigate whether both exchange rate changes and exchange rate volatility affect firms of different sizes differently. Applying the two-step system generalized method of moment estimator on our data for a sample of 221 Pakistani manufacturing firms, we find that the real exchange rate depreciation has positive impacts, whereas the exchange rate volatility has negative impacts on firms’ exports. We also find that compared to large-sized firms, small- and medium-sized exporting firms are more likely to benefit from currency depreciations. Yet, regarding the effect of exchange rate volatility, we find that the adverse impact of exchange rate volatility is weaker for large-sized firms as compared to small- and medium-sized firms. Our findings confirm the presence of nonlinearity in export-deterring (favoring) effects of exchange rate volatility (depreciation) on exporting behavior depending on firm size. Pakistan should design and implement export-favoring preferential policies by emphasizing on real exchange rate stabilization and providing incentives to large firms to come into being. Small- and medium-sized enterprises should develop such export strategies that help reduce their size disadvantages, particularly in managing exchange rate risks.     

Inspiring employees' ecological behaviors: The roles of corporate environmental strategy,biospheric values,and eco-centric leadership

The consequences of environmental degradation have steered organizations to promote pro-ecological behaviors among their employees, and achieving this effectively is paramount for business and environmental sustainability. Applying a multilevel integrated approach, this study investigates the impact of corporate environmental strategy, biospheric values, and eco-centric leadership on employees' ecological behaviors. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data from 289 employees from a cross section of industries in Bangladesh. The findings reveal the significant influences of environmental strategy and biospheric values on employees' ecological behaviors as well as the moderating role of eco-centric leadership. The study also provides some significant insights for formulating environmental strategy and inspiring employees' ecological behaviors in organizational contexts. Theoretical and managerial implications as well as future research directions have also been provided.     

Entry,growth, and survival: The new learning on firm selection and industry evolution

This paper tries to shed some light on the seeming paradox posed by the findings in the industrial organization literature that (1) the bulk of firms in an industry are not only very small, but also sufficiently small so that they are operating at a sub-optimal scale of output, and (2) entrepreneurs are apparently not deterred from starting new firms even in industries where scale economies play an important role. A dynamic view of the process of firm selection and industry evolution is that new firms typically start at a very smal scale of output. Because this level of output may be sub-optimal, the firm must grow in order to survive. The empirical evidence supports such a dynamic view of the evolutionary nature of industries. Viewed through a dynamic lens, the often-observed asymmetric size distribution of firms becomes more understandable. The persistence of an asymmetric firm-size distribution skewed towards small enterprises presumably reflects a continuing process of entry into industries and not necessarily the survival of such small and suboptimal enterprises over a long period of time.     

Survival of Newly Founded Businesses: A Log-Logistic Model Approach

Based on a longitudinal database we test the "liability of adolescence" hypothesis which states that new firm hazard rates follow an inverted U-shaped pattern. That is, the hazard rate is low for the initial period; the end of adolescence is marked by a hazard maximum, from which the rate declines monotonically. We use a log-logistic model which shows that the "liability of adolescence" argument describes the hazard rates of new establishments for all two and three-digit industries fairly well. Further, the rate shows that the desegregation of industries matters, and considerable differences are found within and across two and three-digit low-, moderate- and high-tech industries. In assessing the effect of market environment conditions on risk we find that risk to be elevated in a relatively large number of two-digit low- and high-tech industries in the presence of scale economies, but it is substantially reduced in moderate-tech industries. By contrast, the hazard rate tends to be reduced for quite a large number of three-digit low-, moderate- and high-tech industries in comparison with the two-digit industries, indicating a longer adolescence. The influence of start-up size in reducing the hazard rate is apparently similar between two and three digit low-, moderate- and high-tech industries. The impact of market growth on the risk of failure is not much different for both two and three-digit low-, moderate- and high-tech industries.     

Industrialization and Government Expenditures: The Case of South Korea

South Korea has been transformed from a nation of war torn poverty to an industrial giant in one generation. Many attribute this to the role of government and believe that the size of government spending increases with industrialization. This paper, using time series data for the 1970–1990 period, empirically tested the impact of industrialization on government spending in Korea. Our results suggest that the two major determinants of public spending are private sector's income (output) and the overall state of employment. Further, our results show that the income elasticity of demand for public goods is greater than unity, both in the short-run and long-run. [H1]     

Iranian consumer animosity and U.S. products: A witch's brew or elixir?

This research investigates the animosity of more than 900 Iranian consumers toward the U.S. and their propensity to purchase U.S.-made products/brands in the context of a prolonged hostility between the two countries. Our results suggest that the antecedent demographic variables of education, age and foreign travel experience are inversely related to consumer animosity whereas women and students tend to hold greater consumer animosity feelings than men and non-students. Additionally we found a strong and significant inverse relationship between Iranian consumer animosity and intention to buy U.S.-made products, but no moderating effects based upon product importance or product necessity were uncovered in our consumer animosity model. The major managerial implications of our study are threefold: (1) MNCs are well advised not to ignore or underestimate the economic value of hostile markets; (2) within hostile markets, MNCs ought to be proactive and pursue alternative oversight strategies when constrained by national institutions; and (3) local and foreign competitors may exploit such animosity to better position their own products against the products of a country that is a target of consumers’ animosity.     

Optimal ordering policies in response to a discount offer

Sometimes supplier offers a temporary price discount to increase cash flow or decrease the inventory level of certain items. Thus, the manufacturer may be able to improve the effectiveness of his inventory system by ordering a special quantity at this sale period. In this paper, economic order quantity (EOQ) models with a discounted price are developed to obtain the optimal ordering policy during the sale period for five different cases: (a) coincidence of sale period with replenishment time, (b) non-coincidence of sale period with replenishment time, (c) sale period is longer than a cycle, (d) discounted price as a function of the special ordering quantity, and (e) incremental discount. Each case has its own characteristics of the sale period and the discounted price. The objective is to take the maximum possible advantage from the discounted price by ordering a special quantity during the sale period. The optimal ordering policy is obtained by maximizing the difference between the two costs: Regular EOQ cost and special quantity cost during the sale period. Moreover, a comparison of different discount scenarios is developed to sense the effect of different parameters on the ordering policies. The annual gain obtained is linearly related to the discount and the on-hand remnant inventory. Numerical analyses are provided to illustrate and testify the values of the optimal special quantity. The analysis showed an impressive improvement in the effectiveness of the inventory system when a special order is placed during the sale period. The optimal special quantity is driven for each case to visualize real-life problems. Sensitivity analysis is also initiated to study the change in the total savings with respect to the variation of the special optimal quantity.     

Labour productivity and employment in Australian manufacturing SMEs

This paper examines the relationship between labour productivity and employment in Australian manufacturing small and medium enterprises (SMEs). The results indicate that labour productivity of SMEs varies substantially between industries within the manufacturing sector, but on average labour productivity for manufacturing SMEs increased at a faster rate than that of large manufacturing enterprises across all industries. All manufacturing industries except one recorded employment growth during the period under study. However like labour productivity growth, employment growth also varies across industries within the manufacturing sector. Yet the study could not establish any definite relationship between labour productivity growth and employment. This finding is consistent with some previous studies.     

The Impact of Information Overload and Contribution Overload on Continued Usage of Electronic Knowledge Repositories

In the modern competitive organizational environment, more and more organizations are implementing knowledge management initiatives to achieve strategic advantages. One such initiative involves the implementation of electronic knowledge repositories (EKR). EKR implementation frequently results in a rapid increase in the quantity of information that must be processed daily by employees. This raises concerns about information overload (IO), and this is particularly true in relation to modern EKRs that use distributive technology. Furthermore, employees can also suffer from contribution overload (CO) because they can fulfill the functions of both knowledge seekers and knowledge contributors. This study employs the cognitive dissonance theory to determine whether IO and CO affect employees' willingness to use EKRs. The results from 144 survey respondents provide the first empirical evidence that contribution overload exerts a direct and significant negative effect on the intention to continue using EKR, whereas information overload exerts an indirect and significant negative effect on the intention to continue using EKR by altering perceived usefulness and satisfaction with the system.