Employee Ownership and Company Performance

This paper investigates how Britain's largest employee-owned firm, the John Lewis Partnership, performs relative to its major competitors. In the context of John Lewis's unique constitutional structure, employee ownership appears to offer significant advantages in the market place. It is difficult to assess the relative importance of particular policies; as a group, employee ownership, open information flows, high wages, and profit share are clearly associated with high productivity.     

Perceptions and Price: Evidence from CEO Presentations at IPO Roadshows

This paper examines the relation between cognitive perceptions of management and firm valuation. We develop a composite measure of investor perception using 30‐second content‐filtered video clips of initial public offering (IPO) roadshow presentations. We show that this measure, designed to capture viewers’ overall perceptions of a CEO, is positively associated with pricing at all stages of the IPO (proposed price, offer price, and end of first day of trading). The result is robust to controls for traditional determinants of firm value. We also show that firms with highly perceived management are more likely to be matched to high‐quality underwriters. In further exploratory analyses, we find the impact is greater for firms with more uncertain language in their written S‐1. Taken together, our results provide evidence that investors’ instinctive perceptions of management are incorporated into their assessments of firm value.     

THE ECONOMICS OF INTRODUCING WINE INTO GROCERY STORES

The repeal of the Prohibition Act in 1933 introduced many state‐specific regulations in wine markets. For example, 15 states currently have laws that restrict wine sales in grocery stores. Several of these states have proposed changes that would expand the distribution of wine; however, the proposals have met significant resistance from key stakeholders and none have resulted in legislation. It is widely expected that additional proposals will be initiated, but with more attention given to mechanisms that would address some of the transitional issues. A simulation model is developed here to assess the likely economic effects of introducing wine into grocery stores in New York State. Results indicate that tax revenue would increase by $22 million annually, revenue for in‐state wineries would increase by approximately 13%, and revenue for liquor store owners is calculated to fall by 28%. Simulation results are subsequently used to develop a framework for evaluating the transitional costs of policy reform in this highly regulated industry. (JEL K23, Q18)     

Determinants of Thrift Institution Resolution Costs

This paper provides a detailed examination of the cost imposed by thrift institutions resolved during the period 1980–1988. A simple model is presented to explain the cost of resolution. This model is tested empirically with a comprehensive data set that permits us to avoid some of the econometric problems present in earlier studies. The empirical evidence suggests that the model that explains resolution costs in the late 1980s is significantly different from the model for either the middle or early 1980s. This evidence is consistent with the changing nature of the thrift crisis and changes in the regulator's closure rule. Our econometric evidence, moreover, is consistent with the hypothesis that, for troubled institutions, tangible net worth systematically understates market-value net worth. In addition, the importance of including time effects as well as institution effects as determinants of the cost of resolution is revealed.     

‘So Long as I Take my Mobile’: Mobile Phones,Urban Life and Geographies of Young People's Safety

Mobile phone ownership has spread rapidly among young people in the UK. This article contributes to an expanding body of literature which is examining the consequences of this phenomenon for urban life. Our focus is the impact of mobile phones on young people's geographies, particularly their own and their parents’ fears about their safety in public spaces. Quantitative and qualitative findings are presented from two research projects in Gateshead, north‐east England on crime victimization and leisure injury risk for young people, in which the role of mobile phones in managing and negotiating safety emerged as significant. The article highlights the different ways in which young people and parents are using mobile phones for this purpose, and asks whether they are best viewed as technologies of surveillance or empowerment. We also raise questions about the efficacy of mobile phones in protecting young people from risk and fear, in particular examining the mobile as a new site of victimization. Throughout, we emphasize the social unevenness of the uses and impacts of new technologies, which is often underplayed in research. We conclude with the suggestion that although they offer some empowerment to young people in their use of public spaces and their negotiation of risk, mobile phones appear to be reshaping rather than reducing moral panics about young people's presence there. Au Royaume‐Uni, le téléphone mobile s’est répandu rapidement parmi les jeunes. Cet article s’ajoute aux documents en nombre croissant qui étudient les conséquences de ce phénomène sur la vie urbaine. Il s’attache à l’impact des mobiles sur la géographie des jeunes, notamment sur leurs craintes personnelles et celles de leurs parents quant à leur sécurité dans les espaces publics. Il présente des résultats quantitatifs et qualitatifs provenant de deux projets de recherches à Gateshead (nord‐est de l’Angleterre) sur le risque pour les jeunes d’être victimes d’un acte criminel et de se blesser durant un loisir, cas où les mobiles semblent jouer un rôle important pour gérer et négocier la sécurité. L’article met en lumière les différents modes d’utilisation des mobiles à cette fin, par les jeunes et les parents, en se demandant si ces téléphones sont d’abord considérés comme des technologies de surveillance ou de responsabilisation. Il interroge également l’efficacité des mobiles pour protéger les jeunes contre risques et craintes, notamment en envisageant ces téléphones comme nouveau terrain de victimisation. Dans son ensemble, ce travail souligne l’irrégularité sociale des usages et impacts des nouvelles technologies, souvent minimisée dans la recherche. La conclusion suggère que, même s’ils offrent une certaine responsabilisation aux jeunes dans leur utilisation des espaces publics et leur négociation du risque, les téléphones mobiles semblent remodeler, non réduire, les paniques morales liées à leur présence dans ces lieux.