The Impact of Institutional Differences on Derivatives Usage: a Comparative Study of US and Dutch Firms

This paper examines the influence of institutional differences on corporate risk management practices in the USA and the Netherlands. We compare results to surveys in each country using a strategy that corrects for differences over industry and size classes across the Dutch and US samples. We document several differences in the firms’ uses and attitudes towards derivatives and attempt to attribute them to the differences in the institutional environments between the USA and the Netherlands. We find that institutional differences appear to have an important impact on risk management practices and derivatives use across US and Dutch firms.     

Derivative activities and the risk of international banks: A market index and VaR approach

The results of a comparison of international banks using a three-factor multi-index model and a modified value-at-risk (VaR) analysis indicate that the use of options increases the interest rate beta for all banks, while both interest rate and currency swaps generally reduce risk. The results are the strongest and the most consistent for U.S. dealer banks, followed by European banks, and then Japanese banks. Furthermore, the evidence suggests that the VaR approach to risk management can effectively be used by both domestic as well as international banks, although the results appear to be somewhat sensitive to the regulatory environment in which the bank operates.     

The Impact of the Implementation of Technology Education on In-Service Teacher Education in South Africa (Impact of Technology Education in the RSA)

In this article the impact of technology education, as a new learning area (subject) in the curriculum, on in-service teacher education in South Africa is described in order to ascertain the extent of the impact. The research on which this article is based draws on a variety of experiences and observations in the field at grassroots level (in particular an outreach project in rural communities). The envisaged impact of technology education on South African schools, communities, teacher educators and teachers, the range of in-service teacher education that is required, and the impacts in urban and rural areas are discussed. Finally a number of concluding remarks are made about the extent of the impact of the inclusion of technology education in the new National Curriculum Statement and whether the situation has changed since the implementation of a pilot technology education project in 1998. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

我国城市社区空间组织管理:问题、思考与创新设想

在我国经济转轨、社会转型，单位人转为社会人，单位制的城市社会管理转为社区制的城市社会管理的大背景下，以城市基层居民委员会辖区为单位的城市社区空间组织管理越来越实现出其重要的地位和作用。文章对我国现阶段城市社区空间组织管理存在的问题，进行了分析与思考，并提出了创新设想。     

两合计划:从政府需要角度透视其职能转变

立足政府需要,从侧面对当前政府职能转变过程进行分析和探讨,希望以政府本身作为理性实体的运作为基础,对该问题进行解释。     

事业单位固定资产管理必须加强

加强事业单位资产管理，管好用好国有资产，保证资产的安全、完整，对促进事业单位发展意义重大。为此，必须从建立资产管理机构、建立全面预算控制制度，完善基础管理工作等入手，强化事业单位固定资产管理。     

Sources, uses, and forms of data in the new product development process

This paper presents qualitative and exploratory research investigating the role that managing knowledge and information plays in new product development (NPD). A set of 20 in-depth interviews uncovered eight basic types of information used throughout the NPD process and three general approaches to managing information needed in the NPD process. Although some exemplary companies seem to do an outstanding job of collecting and disseminating information, the majority of firms struggle. NPD process automation solutions tackle part of the problem, ignoring nonquantitative data forms and the full picture of information use throughout the entire development process.     

农民养老问题亟待解决

农村现行的家庭养老、土地养老、集体养老正在弱化,巩固家庭养老的基础地位,强化土地保障功能,辅之以社区扶持,推行多层次养老保险,符合中国国情和农村生产力发展水平,是解决农村养老问题的必然选择.     

经济增加值(EVA)在经营决策评估中的应用

EVA是从股东财富最大化出发来衡量公司业绩的指标,国外许多大公司的成功实践证明了它的价值。本文从公司的经营决策评估角度探讨其应用性,试图为提高中小企业的科学决策水平提供一些帮助。     

Smart work and hard work: explicating a learning orientation in strategic management accounting

This paper examines the skills and aptitudes necessary to undertake a strategic management accounting project. It argues that individuals involved in such projects are required to work both smart and hard. This argument is developed theoretically by reference to the work of educational psychologists who have identified two different types of goal orientation which people pursue in achievement situations: the learning orientation and the performance orientation. Evidence that strategic management accounting requires a learning orientation is provided by means of a case study which describes its use in a competitive tendering situation. This is followed by a discussion of the potentially symbiotic relationship of strategic management accounting and organizational learning. The discussion leads to the specification of a research agenda that may have significant implications for the practice and learning of management accounting.