Marketing a business school to industry

Universities are typically production oriented in their approach to customers. However, a marketing approach can be adopted to orient research and development, to aid in the development of the educational services provided, and to direct their promotion and their pricing policies. The application of the principles of organizational marketing by a graduate school of business to its short courses for managers had major impacts throughout the school.     

The London Business School econometric model of the UK

This paper describes the London Business School econometric model — the first fully computerized model of the UK — which has been used for regular public forecasting since 1966. The model, estimated on quarterly data, is organized around the income expenditure accounts with a fully integrated flow of funds sector which ensures consistency between portfolio decisions and income, savings and investment decisions. Aggregate demand is built up from its individual components so that demand influences are important for the short- and medium-term behaviour of the model. But there are important supply-side effects which work through the real exchange rate and real wages. Monetary conditions have a powerfull effect on the model through the exchange rate, personal sector wealth and interest rates. Wages and employment are determined in a labour market in which employment decisions depend on the level of demand and real wages while real wages depend on the level of unemployment, real benefits and direct and indirect taxes as well as underlying trends in productivity. Asset prices move in any period to clear both the spot and the future market in assets so that current asset prices in the equity, gilt-edged and foreign exchange markets reflect all current information about the expected state of the economy. In contrast, goods prices adjust sluggishly. The combination of continuously clearing asset markets and sluggish wages and prices gives the model many of the theoretical characteristics associated with the open-economy models of Dornbusch and Buiter and Miller.     

A Lesson Learned from the Comparison of Bank Interest Rate in US and UK

According to the interest board, the current account interest and the loan interest rate vary from banks to countries. Both the current account interest and loan interest of US banks are lower than those of UK banks. And the spread between the two interest rates is greater in UK than that in US. Why is that？ The central banks base rates are always the reference interest rates for other banks when setting up the interest rates of their own. And the economy situation in that country may be a factor that affects the spread. Moreover, these two aspects link to each other. In this paper, we will look deeply into the economic situation and the pattern of change in the central bank interest rates in US and UK, hopefully we can bum a light to figure out the trend of change in bank interest rates.     

The Role and Current Status of IFRS in the Completion of National Accounting Rules – Evidence from Ireland

Abstract

We examine the extent to which International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) are used as a reference point and as a basis for the development of accounting standards in the Republic of Ireland (ROI). In particular, the focus is on accounting standards applicable to entities other than those listed on a regulated EU market. The objective is to provide a deeper understanding of the direct and indirect effect of IFRS on accounting standards applicable predominantly to private companies limited by shares in ROI. We illustrate how the historical links between the UK and ROI continue to influence accounting standards applicable in ROI. The enactment of the Companies (Accounting) Bill 2016 into ROI law will maintain the traditional alignment of UK and ROI accounting regulation, whilst simultaneously bringing into force the remaining aspects of the EU Accounting Directive 2013/34/EU, not currently applicable in ROI.     

英国电网应急预案与紧急恢复

针对我国南方雪灾造成大面积断电后如何紧急恢复的命题,本文收集和整理了英国电力应急机制的有关信息.首先简要回顾了英国电力工业的市场化运行背景.重点介绍英国国家电网公司的电网应急预案和电网系统崩溃时的紧急恢复(黑启动),最后对我国的电网设计提出一些建议.     

New development: In pursuit of WGA—Research findings from the UK

In 1998, the UK Treasury and National Audit Office recommended the publication of whole of government accounts (WGA) and set out timelines for a full set of audited accounts to be made available for 2005–06. So far nothing has been published. This article considers the promises, practical pursuit and evaluation of WGA.     

Old wine in new bottles: IFRS adoption in NHS foundation trusts

UK public sector organizations, including NHS foundation trusts, have changed to International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). Treasury aims were ‘to bring benefits in consistency and comparability between financial reports in the global economy and to follow private sector best practice’. This comparative analysis of foundation trusts' financial statements under IFRS shows worse financial results and lower surpluses for the year, higher values of fixed (non-current) assets and more indebtedness than under UK GAAP. Implications of the new accounting regime on comparability and transparency of NHS organizations are discussed—some wine shows improvement, while other wine looks worse in the new bottles.     

Bridging the academic–policy-making gap: practice and policy issues

How policy-makers engage with academics is both a current ‘hot’ topic and a perennial problem. Policy initiatives such as the Research Excellence Framework's (REF) so-called ‘impact agenda’ have ‘pushed’ academics towards seeking more such engagement, whilst others ‘pull’ towards it, such as ‘open policy-making’. Apart from some biographical accounts and case studies, surprisingly little is known at a more general level about how policy-makers do actually engage with academic research and expertise. Analysis of these policies, as well as empirical evidence from the British civil service, suggest these engagements may be generating more ‘endarkenment’ (to use Weiss's term) than enlightenment.     

Managing Change,or Changing Managers? The role of middle managers in UK public service reform

Abstract

Drawing upon interview data from three case study organizations, we examine the role of middle managers in UK public service reform. Using theory fragments from organizational ecology and role theory, we develop three role archetypes that middle managers might be enacting. We find that rather than wholesale enactment of a ‘change agent’ role, middle managers are balancing three predominant, but often conflicting, change-related roles: as ‘government agent’, ‘diplomat administrator’ and, less convincingly, ‘entrepreneurial leader’. Central government targets are becoming the main preoccupation for middle managers across many public services and they represent a dominant constraint on allowing ‘managers to manage’.     

Ethnic diversity on top corporate boards: a resource dependency perspective

This paper examines the presence of ethnic minority (EM) directors on FTSE 100 company boards, following the 2003 Higgs Review, which strongly recommended that more efforts should be made to find talented non-executive directors with diverse backgrounds, including EM individuals. The 20 companies with EM directors are significantly more likely than other boards to have higher market capitalization, a larger workforce and a larger, more independent and gender-diverse board. Their sectors are banking and life assurance, media, pharmaceuticals, energy, chemicals, mining, telecoms, and food and beverage production. The 27 EM directors hold 28 seats, representing 2.4 per cent of all FTSE 100 directorships, almost the same as in 2001, indicating little impact of the 2003 Higgs recommendations. Next, drawing on resource dependency theory, this paper considers the human and social capital of EM directors. They have high levels of human capital, particularly advanced education and considerable social capital from connections to important resources. Even executive directors provide links to public bodies and community influence. Boardroom expertise and linkages acquired through these appointments fit well with challenges faced by companies in the sectors where EM directors have been appointed, particularly relating to globalization, post-colonialism, increased regulation, importance of CSR, reputation, learning and increased connectedness, supporting the resource dependency explanation.