Helpful Reviewers in TripAdvisor,an Online Travel Community

Online communities need a critical mass for communication, information, and entertainment and should provide useful information for their members in order to obtain this critical mass. The abundance of online travel reviews increases cognitive costs of travelers, and travelers use extrinsic cues to judge the quality of online reviews to eliminate costs associated with the information process. Of various cues used in online environments, this study examined an online reputation system in TripAdvisor.com and profiled the reviewers who post helpful reviews in the online travel community. The key findings include that helpful reviewers are those who travel more, actively post reviews, belong to any age and gender groups, and give lower hotel ratings. This study adds to research of online travel reviewers by characterizing helpful information creators among online content creators.     

Appropriability,services and reputation

The appropriability regime (Teece 1986) that innovating service firms face is generally weaker than what firms in manufacturing sectors face. An important means to appropriate benefits from innovation that service firms can use is their reputation. This conceptual paper offers insights into how a firm’s reputation helps in appropriating value from innovation. Depending on the nature of a service, different kinds of third parties come into play in establishing reputation. In helping firms establish a reputation, such third parties influence customer decisions to acquire a service. While ‘to produce a service is to organise a solution to a problem’, and thus does not involve a third party, is true for pure services in particular, for a service firm to benefit from innovation such others are involved.     

Underwriter Reputation in Brazilian IPOs

This study updates previous analyses of banks' activities in equity offerings in the Brazilian market. Using data for the 2004–2007 period, the study tests the hypotheses that banks with the highest reputations coordinate offerings with lower initial returns, lower levels of risk and charge more for their services. Three measures of reputation were constructed in line with measures used for the US market. None of the measures showed a statistically significant relationship with returns, risk, or remuneration. The difference between the mid-point of the preliminary price range and the offering price constituted the most significant element in the forecasting of returns.     

Corporate Social Responsibility and Business Value of Multinational Companies: Lessons from a Sub-Saharan African Environment

ABSTRACT

The issue of corporate social responsibility (CSR) as an approach for businesses to independently take actions that lead to better levels of societal development as well as higher value creation for the business, particularly in developing countries has gained much advocacy. Thus, the purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between CSR and business value of multinational companies (MNCs) in sub-Saharan Africa. The study adopted quantitative research methodology and using multiple regression analysis, findings show that CSR can positively and significantly predict business values in the multinational subsidiaries. These values include direct (economic value) and indirect (human capital value and reputational business value). This paper therefore contributes to a novel CSR index from the perspective of business value and sustainability of MNCs in the Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) environment. Thus, the paper recommends MNCs operating in Africa to enhance their social investment through their CSR strategy with the aim that CSR must not be regarded as a cost center, but an investment instrument that can accrue various dividends.     

控制权配置对企业投资行为的影响研究——基于企业家注重声誉的视角

如何通过提高企业家声誉来优化企业投资行为事关我国企业的健康发展。通过构建企业投资支出的回归模型,对控制权配置与企业投资行为进行实证检验。实证分析表明,在企业家注重声誉的前提下,第一大股东持股比例与企业投资支出水平负相关,而当内部现金流充裕时,股权制衡比例与企业投资支出水平正相关。因此,可以通过建立企业家征信制度、完善充分竞争的企业家市场、确保企业家有长远预期和培育合格的市场主体等措施,提高企业家声誉,优化企业投资行为。     

企业救灾行为匹配性对企业声誉的影响研究

探讨了企业救灾行为情景匹配与功能匹配对企业声誉的影响。问卷调查结果表明,消费者对企业救灾行为的功能匹配与情景匹配有比较清醒的感知。进一步的实验研究结果表明,低水平（ VS．高水平）功能匹配和高水平（ VS．低水平）情景匹配的企业救灾行为对消费者感知企业声誉有更积极影响;同时,当情景匹配水平较低时,低水平（ VS．高水平）功能匹配的救灾行为对消费者感知企业声誉有显著积极影响;相反,当情景匹配水平较高时,高水平（ VS．低水平）功能匹配的救灾行为对消费者感知企业声誉有显著的积极影响。     

Responses by Australian auditors to the global financial crisis

We examine the impact of the global financial crisis (GFC) on auditor behaviour in Australia. Using a sample of listed companies, we examine whether the GFC impacted the propensity of auditors to issue going concern modifications and increased audit effort as reflected in audit fees and audit reporting lag. Controlling for client characteristics, we find an increase in the propensity to issue going concern opinions during the period 2008–2009 compared with the period 2005–2007 and that Big N auditors responded to the GFC earlier than non‐Big N auditors. In relation to audit effort, we find evidence of increased audit fees during the period 2008–2009 compared with the period 2005–2007. There is, however, no evidence of increased audit reporting lags during the GFC.     

网络购物中商品质量问题发生机理及监管研究述评

网络购物中商品质量问题发生机理源于信息不对称和市场的不确定性。为了解决该问题,网络购物网站、政府、第三方中介机构等相关方采取在线信誉机制、信息传递手段、社会信用体系促进、质量检验和质量保证等展开了对网络购物中商品质量的监管。目前,学术界对该课题的研究仍不够专门和深入,针对中国式背景下的网络购物商品质量,未来的研究可集中在网络购物中的商品质量影响因素、质量评价和质量监管上。     

Balancing acts: Managing employees and reputation in social media

Abstract

Although previous studies have shown that social-media platforms offer companies new ways to gain business value, they have also identified fundamental brand-related challenges in social media. The purpose of this paper is to complement the extant literature by addressing the ways in which companies manage their reputation in social media, focusing on the role of employees. We first illustrate how social-media environments amplify the need for distinct corporate reputation-management practices and, second, how challenges and solutions vary across companies in different sectors and businesses. We contribute to prior research by conceptualising corporate reputation management in social media as balancing acts, which take place in relation to different, contradictory, and sometimes paradoxical priorities related to branding and managing employees.     

中国企业声誉测评指标体系构建研究

本文根据我国市场发育情况与我国企业声誉建设现状,在综合国内外现有企业声誉模型和指标的基础上,通过收集第一手数据,运用规范的研究方法与研究程序,提出了一个科学的企业声誉测评指标体系。这一测评指标体系有助于解决如何度量我国企业声誉优劣程度的关键性难题。