Technology choice under changing peanut policies

The effect of marketing quotas and price supports on technology adoption are examined for peanut production in the southeastern United States using a real options model of investment with output price and yield uncertainty. The optimal choice of peanut production technology (dryland versus irrigated) in the southeast is shown to depend on price supports and how they change. The manner in which price supports change will have an effect on the choice and rates of abandonment or adoption of production technologies.     

Technology, Labor Wars, and Producer Dynamics: Explaining Consolidation in Beefpacking

Beefpacking underwent a dramatic transformation in the 1970s and 1980s, as plants got much larger and industry concentration rose dramatically. We use individual Census Bureau plant records to analyze the sources of the transformation. We find that there were modest but extensive scale economies in packing plants, covering the full range of plant sizes, and that such economies became more important throughout the period of the study. As production shifted to larger plants, we estimate that the industry's aggregate processing costs fell by 35.3% by 2002, compared to what they would have been without consolidation.     

Testing for the Presence of Financial Constraints in US Agricultural Cooperatives: An Investment Behaviour Approach

This study examines the presence of financial constraints in US agricultural cooperatives. We test the cooperative capital constraint hypothesis with a panel data econometric analysis of agricultural cooperatives’ investment behaviour. Regression results suggest that agricultural cooperatives’ capital expenditures are significantly affected by the availability of internal funds. Results also indicate that the sensitivity of investment to cash flow is correlated with cooperative structural characteristics.     

THE IMPACT OF FARM AND PROCESSING RESEARCH ON THE AUSTRALIAN WOOL INDUSTRY*

An equilibrium displacement model of the world wool top industry is used to estimate the returns to the Australian wool industry from productivity improvements in farm production, in top making and in textile manufacturing. The returns to the industry from these different types of research and development are sensitive to the extent of substitution possibilities between Australian wool and other inputs used by the wool processing and textile industries but it appears that research resources have to be much more efficient in off-farm activities for the Australian wool industry to receive benefits similar to those from farm research activities.     

Does reduced trade tax revenue affect government spending patterns?

Many skeptics of trade liberalization in the developing world argue that lowering trade taxes can cause significant fiscal pressures in countries particularly reliant on these taxes and result in a reallocation of resources away from important development goals. This paper evaluates whether there is evidence that central governments systematically change the composition of spending priorities in the wake of lowered trade tax revenues as a share of total government revenues. We find no systematic evidence for this concern in a sample of 51 developing countries for the 1991 through 2005 period.     

Aligning managed care contracts, compensation plans, and incentive models

Today's pure production-based compensation and incentive models are lagging behind new, third-party, "value based" payment models, such as shared savings, bundled payments, and pay for performance. Financial executives are struggling with the emerging disconnects between new, external payment models and traditional methods providers use to distribute funds internally. To begin to align internal payment models with emerging third-party payment models, providers should inventory the misaligned incentives within their own organizations, engage their physicians and payers in a dialogue on what needs to be paid and how, and learn from past mistakes. No perfect payment distribution model exists. Rather, providers should choose a best-fit model based on their market position, culture, and readiness for change. Ultimately, finance executives should take the lead in aligning their organization's internal and external payment models.     

Competition,cooperation, and corporate culture

Cooperation between workers can be of substantial value to a firm, yet its level often varies substantially between firms. We show that these differences can unfold in a competitive labor market if workers have heterogeneous social preferences and preferences are private information. In our model, workers differ in their willingness to cooperate voluntarily. We show that there always exists a separating equilibrium in which workers self‐select into firms that differ in their monetary incentives as well as their level of worker cooperation. Our model highlights the role of sorting and worker heterogeneity in the emergence of heterogeneous corporate cultures. It also provides a new explanation for the coexistence of nonprofit and for‐profit firms.

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Implementing a strategic approach to employee wellness--globally and locally

Today's multinational companies understand the need for a healthier workforce. Whether in developed markets such as the United States and the United Kingdom, or in emerging economies such as China and India, health trends pointing to a rising incidence of chronic disease and lifestyle-related health issues are requiring a strategic response from employers. A study MetLife undertook in coordination with the Sloan Center on Aging & Work at Boston College involved a detailed examination at four large multinational companies to understand how health trends vary by country and the specific programs the organizations implemented to support a healthier workforce. This article highlights some of the bestpractices the study found for an integrated health and wellness program.