Measuring managerial equity ownership: a comparison of sources of ownership data

This paper demonstrates that differences in managerial ownership data cannot explain contradictory empirical evidence on the relation between equity ownership and the entrenchment of managers. Three commonly used sources of managerial equity ownership data are described and contrasted. The Value Line Investment Survey is shown to be a relatively low-cost substitute for the data on beneficial ownership by officers and directors found in corporate proxy statements.     

Financial Distress in Australian General Insurers

We develop and test a statistical model to identify Australian general insurers experiencing financial distress over the 1999–2001 period. Using a logit model and two measures of financial distress we are able to predict, with reasonable confidence, the insurers more likely to be distressed. They are generally small and have low return on assets and cession ratios. Relative to holdings of liquid assets they have high levels of property and reinsurance assets, and low levels of equity holdings. They also write more overseas business, and less motor insurance and long‐tailed insurance lines, relative to fire and household insurance.     

Data breaches and identity theft

An environment is analyzed in which agents join clubs (payment networks) in order to facilitate trade. The networks compile personal identifying data (PID) so as to match transactors to transactions histories. Technological limitations cause the networks’ data management practices to impact each other's incidence and costs of identity theft. Too much data collection and too little security arise in equilibrium with noncooperative networks compared to the efficient allocation. A number of potential remedies are analyzed: (1) reallocations of data-breach costs, (2) mandated security levels, and (3) mandated limits on the amount of data collected.     

Do people with disabilities believe the ADA has served their consumer interests?

In recent years, numerous changes in the retail sector have been made to create accessibility for people with disabilities and to establish compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This paper examines the responses of 1,000 people with disabilities taken from the 1998 National Organization on Disability/Harris Survey of Americans with Disabilities. These data enable us to examine whether the consumer interests of people with disabilities have been served by this legislation from the perspective of the people whom the law was designed to protect. The findings indicate that (1) respondents who are aware of the ADA are significantly more likely than those unaware of the ADA to believe that things have gotten better since the enactment of the ADA; however, a clear majority of those who are aware still believe that the ADA has made no difference; (2) respondents believe perceived access is related to disabilities and to environmental factors; (3) respondents who perceive fewer access problems spend more time in the marketplace; and (4) greater life satisfaction is related to greater perceptions of marketplace access and more frequent participation in the marketplace. In general, the results show that respondents believe their consumer interests have been served by the ADA, but the results also show there is more to be done.     

Insolvency law reform in Australia and Singapore: Directors' liability for insolvent trading and wrongful trading

This article compares reforms to directors' liability for insolvent trading in Singapore and in Australia. We analyse the law in these two countries because they are important Asia‐Pacific trading partners and their laws were originally largely the same—Singapore's law on insolvent trading reflected the law in Australia from the 1960s. However, the law in the two countries has now diverged substantially. The comparison of these two countries therefore represents an interesting case study in how countries differ in their approaches to balancing the competing interests evident in laws that impose personal liability on company directors for insolvent trading. Reform of the prohibition against insolvent trading was a focus of Australia's insolvency law reforms in 2017, which led to the introduction of a safe harbour for directors from liability. Singapore's omnibus insolvency law reforms of 2018–19 include amendments to update Singapore's fraudulent and insolvent trading provisions by introducing a concept of “wrongful trading.” The article finds that there are some areas of convergence between these two jurisdictions when it comes to debates about such provisions but concludes that the different contemporary legislative histories in Australia and Singapore have affected their approaches to reform. Reformers in both jurisdictions have attempted to find an appropriate balance between protecting creditors, discouraging director misconduct, and encouraging entrepreneurship and innovation; however, this comparison suggests that the weight that reformers place on creditor protection compared with the concern that excessive personal liability can make directors unduly risk‐averse is influenced by their existing legislative framework and experience of those laws. Although Australia has shifted away from a strict focus on creditor protection, to give directors more opportunities to engage in restructuring, Singapore's amendments may provide a more creditor‐friendly regime.     

The death of the deal: Are withdrawn acquisition deals informative of CEO quality?

To examine the market response to positive revelations of chief executive officer (CEO) quality, this study focuses on CEOs who withdraw acquisition bids when the price becomes increasingly expensive. Firms that withdrawal for price-related reasons earn higher withdrawal returns than firms that withdraw for other reasons. This relation is stronger when CEO uncertainty and discretion is high. CEOs unwilling to increase the offer price are less likely to be replaced and more likely to advance to a larger firm than a control group of CEOs. The finding that the market attaches value to CEO-specific information suggests that unobservable manager characteristics can meaningfully impact firm outcomes.     

Can socially irresponsible firms benefit from corporate advertising?

Abstract

Can corporate advertising improve firm performance following a brand crisis borne out of corporate social irresponsibility (CSI)? This article investigates socially irresponsible firms and their corporate advertising expenditures, which can be used to counter negative opinions. First, we examine whether firms experiencing a negative brand image due to socially irresponsible behavior alter their corporate advertising expenditures. Next, we assess the resulting impact of corporate advertising spending by CSI firms on overall performance. Using a sample of firms engaging in socially irresponsible behavior between 1995 and 2011, we find that such firms tend to increase their corporate advertising. Such changes in corporate advertising expenditures ultimately impact firm performance. Specifically, an increase in corporate advertising helps to reduce the negative effect of CSI on firm performance.     

Public participation and organizational change in Wisconsin land use management

This article explores the issues that arise when land use management organizations change their previous ways of relating to the public. I introduce an analytic framework for evaluating organizational changes that are grounded in participatory planning and decision making. Using a case study of a recent planning initiative of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, I examine dynamics of trust, civic capacities, personal demands, history of working relationships, and interest in the issue at hand. Though preliminary, the conclusions drawn from this research illustrate how these dynamics may influence the success of participatory planning that reflects organizational change.     

Resources at the Grassroots of Recreation: Organizational Capacity and Quality of Experience in a Community Sport Organization

Grassroots recreation organizations are volunteer-run informal organizations that deliver sport and recreation at the local level. Using a qualitative case study approach, this study examined how the quality of experience in one community sport organization was affected by organizational capacity, or the ability of the organization to mobilize financial, human, and structural capital to fulfill its mission. While the volunteers mobilized social capital, the league experienced significant shortages of human capital including the professional competencies to meet increasingly complex administrative demands. This finding raises concerns about potential disenfranchisement of volunteers.