Divisional Informativeness Gap and Value Creation from Asset Sales

Nanda and Narayanan (1999) show that the information asymmetry between the managers and market participants regarding divisional cash flows helps explain the value creation on asset sales. Based on their theoretical framework, the divisional informativeness gap hypothesis predicts that the announcement‐period return increases with the difference in cash‐flow informativeness of retained and divested divisions prior to the divestiture. Our results, using industry‐average earnings response coefficient as a proxy for cash‐flow informativeness of a division, support this prediction. The effect is stronger when a conglomerate retains the division with relatively greater growth opportunities.     

Does R&D offshoring lead to SME growth? Different governance modes and the mediating role of innovation

Research summary : In this article, we address the role of R&D offshoring strategies in the sales growth of small‐ and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs). We propose that different governance modes of R&D offshoring—insourcing versus outsourcing—may lead to growth, but that they differ in their effects. In turn, we argue that innovation mediates the relation between international R&D sourcing strategies and sales growth. Based on a large database of SME manufacturing enterprises in Spain, we find that offshore outsourcing positively affects sales growth both directly and indirectly, while offshore insourcing only affects sales growth indirectly via innovation results. The analysis reveals different contributions of each governance mode to sales growth and the mediating role of innovation in the relation between R&D offshoring and firm growth. Managerial summary : We analyze how different governance modes of international R&D sourcing—offshore insourcing and outsourcing—may contribute to growth in SMEs. Modes of offshore R&D outsourcing positively affect the growth of sales in two ways. One effect is direct, produced by improved efficiency, flexibility, enhanced resources, and access to new markets. And the other effect is indirect as offshore R&D outsourcing favors the achievement of innovations, and this in turn, positively affects firm growth. For their part, captive modes only exert an indirect effect. Offshore R&D insourcing contributes to the achievement of innovations, and thus, ultimately to firm growth in so far as these innovations enable SMEs to increase sales. Therefore, innovation results perform a mediating role in the relation between R&D offshoring and sales growth. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

盈亏临界点分析在企业多产品经营战略中的运用

利用本量利分析法可以判断盈亏临界点,使生产经营决策科学合理。当企业管理者面对多品种产品的决策时,在考虑企业综合固定成本和产品个别固定成本的前提下,按边际贡献率的大小来安排生产和销售的先后顺序,能够确定出更加精确的盈亏临界点。     

Organizational antecedents to and consequences of service business orientations in manufacturing companies

Although various manufacturing companies have developed into total solution providers, no research addresses their service orientations. Building on the literature on organizational service climate, this study explores the organizational parameters and service business orientations that explain relative product sales and service volume of manufacturing companies. Following an exploratory study involving in-depth interviews, the authors conducted an empirical survey of 137 companies in The Netherlands, Belgium, and Denmark. The study assesses the effects of organizational parameters on the implementation of service business orientations and validates the important distinction between services in support of the client’s actions (SSC) and services in the support of the product (SSP). The findings demonstrate that services in support of the client’s action leverage relative product sales, while services in support of the product generate service volume. In addition to the main effects, the moderating effects of the organizational parameters are discussed.

基于批零系数的城市化阶段探讨

批零系数是指同一时期批发销售额与零售销售额的比值,其变化反映了生产企业产品流通渠道长短的变化。在城市发展的初期,随着城市化率的不断提高,批零系数也不断提高;当城市化率达到一定的高度,批零系数会呈下降趋势;而到城市发展到成熟阶段,社会经济基本达到稳定的状态,批零系数也逐渐达到一个相对稳定的状态。由于城市功能、区位条件等的不同,不同的城市批零系数与城市化率的具体对应关系也有所区别。     

Examining the Relationship Between Advertising Expenditures and Sales of Quick-Service Restaurants in the United States

The United States fast-food industry represents an important business sector with respect to national and international economics. Due to the low levels of product differentiation and high industry competition, fast-food companies heavily engage in advertising and branding activities. Quick-service restaurants (QSR) are the largest and growing segment of the fast-food industry. The current study examined the longitudinal relationship between advertising expenditures and sales revenues for the QSR industry and leading QSR brands in the United States from 1986 to 2007. Hypotheses were tested using a time-series regression analysis. Managerial, research, and policy implications of the results are provided.     

The impact of home–host cultural distance on foreign affiliate sales: The moderating role of cultural variation within host countries

Research on how multinational firms deal with home–host cultural differences argues that cultural differences are minimized and assumes that foreign cultures are homogenous. In this paper we relax the cultural homogeneity assumption. In the presence of cultural variation in host countries the minimization of cultural differences leads existing mean-based indices of cultural differences to overestimate the actual cultural differences these firms have to deal with. We test this argument in a 25-year panel analysis of total US multinationals' foreign sales in 54 host countries. At the sample average of cultural variation, the use of mean cultural difference indices yields a 74% overestimate of the actual cultural difference effect. This suggests that home–host cultural differences are a substantially smaller barrier to multinational sales than hitherto assumed. The assumption of cultural homogeneity leads to conclusions in which a too large role is attributed to cultural differences.     

基于粒子群优化BP神经网络的房价预测

针对房价预测问题,文章给出一种基于粒子群优化的BP神经网络算法,并利用该算法提出两种预测房屋销售价格指数的方法。对房屋销售价格月指数的时间序列预测,直接建立PSO-BP模型;而对年指数预测,首先选择房价影响因素进行因子分析,然后在此基础上建立PSO-BP模型。两种对房屋销售价格指数的PSO-BP模型预测结果与BP模型相比,其精度均有较大提高,收敛更快。     

保险业税收制度相关问题探析

保险是一种市场化的风险转移机制,具有准公共产品性质。这一性质决定了保险税收制度应当兼顾总体税收政策取向和保险业发展的客观要求,充分发挥其对保险业宏观调控和政策导向功能,为保险业发展提供宽松的环境,支持保险业做大、做强。从这一观点出发,论述了我国现行保险业税收制度存在的主要问题,以及相关完善措施,对实践具有一定指导意义。     

企业营销员定位模式选择

目前中国企业界主要存在员工型、代销型和返利型三种营销员定位模式,它们在提高企业销售业绩、降低企业营销成本、保护营销员基本权利及自身合法性等方面均有不同的作用和表现。在对上述三种模式进行分析、比较的基础上,本文提出代销型营销员定位模式应该是我国现阶段销售企业的最佳选择。