Issues Facing Small Accounting Practices in Regional North Queensland: An Exploratory Study

Small accounting practices (SAP), most of which are sole principals, are an important part of the accounting profession and the Australian economy. This exploratory study identifies issues and challenges experienced by small accounting principals in Far North Queensland, Australia. The findings generally correspond with previous research, ranking staffing and keeping up to date through professional development as key areas of concern, and also highlighting the expectation gap between SAP principals and their clients. Stress emerged as a major concern for principals, and new areas of possible conflict of interests were uncovered. A number of potential areas for future research, including comparative studies in city and suburban areas, have been identified.     

Structural variability and its relation to edaphic attributes of mangroves in the south‐west coast of India

We estimated the tree structural variables (density, frequency and basal area) of true mangroves and soil variables like particle size distribution, carbon, available nitrogen and phosphorus, sulphur, nutrient cations (K, Na, Ca, Mg) of Cochin mangroves and examined the relationship between vegetation and environment. The study sites were classified as seaward fringe, riverine and interior. Of the thirteen true mangrove species present, Avicennia officinalis, Sonneratia caseolaris and Excoecaria agallocha showed higher Importance Value Index. The mean stem density varied from 80 to 25,000 no./ha and basal area from 0.1 to 39.68 m²/ha. Seaward mangroves showed maximum stand basal area and biomass production while riverine exhibited maximum density. Maturity Index value of Cochin mangroves revealed a very low degree of structural maturity. Interior mangroves were characterized by silty soil with higher nutrient concentrations. Principal component analysis of soil data revealed that the major factors influencing mangrove vegetation were soil texture, nutrients, salinity and oxidation–reduction potential. The stem density and basal area of different species correlated highly with soil nutrients and texture (p < .001) while salinity showed negative correlations with vegetation characteristics. The data generated in the study would be fundamental in site‐specific management and conservation efforts of these degrading mangroves.     

Sustaining the Farming Household to Sustain the Farming

In the literature on sustainability of agriculture, both labourers and workers are conspicuously absent. Here, the sustainability of agriculture has been defined in terms of whether the farm household in question is able to yield an energy surplus when its members and the animals in its possession are obtaining an adequate ‘energy income’ or Calorie intake. To evaluate the sustainability of 590 farming households in the state of West Bengal, India, during 2004–5, four progressively stricter definitions of sustainability have been proposed, defined and applied. The method of energy balance analysis was followed. A negative surplus was found to be near‐universal across size‐groups in terms of the net area sown (NAS), the gross cultivated area (GCA) and agro‐climatic zones. The threshold output for a non‐negative surplus during the cultivating period was 700,000 megajoules (MJ); in terms of the GCA for a positive ‘full and final’ annual surplus, it was 3 hectares, and in NAS terms it was 2.5 hectares; against NAS per household size, it was 0.6 hectares, for ensuring a positive surplus beyond the annual sustainability. No evidence could be found in favour of household size as an explanation for the negative surplus.     

Bioecology of macrobenthic communities in the microtidal monsoonal Kodungallur–Azhikode Estuary,southwest coast of India

A comprehensive study of the macrobenthic communities in the Kodungallur–Azhikode Estuary (KAE) was conducted during 2009–2011 period. A total of 18,846 organisms were collected, with 60% being malacostracans, followed by polychaetes (20%), molluscs (9%) and ‘others’ group (11%). A total of 79 species in 71 genera belonging to 49 families were identified, with 33 spp. being polychaetes, 26 spp. being malacostracans, 11 spp. being molluscs and 9 spp. being in the ‘others’ group. A single species of opportunistic amphipod (Americorophium triaeonyx) comprised more than 62.05% of the total numerical abundance of macrobenthos. The other dominant species were Obelia bidentata, Arcuatula senhousia, Cirolana fluviatilis, Prionospio cirrifera and Capitella sp. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) results indicated environmental parameters such as water column salinity, turbidity, sediment Eh, substratum type, chlorophyll‐a concentration, depth and organic matter in sediment were the significant factors influencing the distribution of macrobenthic species in the KAE. The present study provides baseline information for future KAE benthic studies.     

Bank Competition and its Determinants: Evidence from Indian Banking

Abstract

This paper measures the degree of bank competition in India using a sample of 70 commercial banks over the period 1996–2016. To assess the degree of competition, we estimate the market power of each bank in our sample employing three nonstructural measures: the Lerner index, the adjusted Lerner index, and the Boone indicator. Bank-wise and year-wise estimates of the marginal cost required in all these measures are obtained using the semi-parametric method. The paper further attempts to undertake a comprehensive assessment of competition in Indian banking and identifies various bank-specific, macroeconomic, structural, and contestability indicators, which are supposed to explain level and variation of the degree of competition over time. Empirical findings reveal that public-sector banks in India exercise a relatively higher degree of bank competition compared to private and foreign-sector banks. However, aggregate results support that the Indian banking system is competitive in general. Unlike the structure-conduct-performance paradigm, which advocates that a concentrated banking system impairs competitiveness, our findings reveal that concentration measures hardly exert any effect on bank competition. Rather, contestability measures play a significant role in the determination of bank competition.     

Investigation of pedestrian crashes using multiple correspondence analysis in India

Abstract

Pedestrian safety is of growing concern with an increasing number of traffic accidents, especially in developing economies like India. In 2017, there were 20,457 pedestrian fatalities in India. Pedestrian crashes have also become a key concern in the state of Tamilnadu, India, due to the high percentage of deaths. If the available datasets are large and complex, identifying key factors is a challenging task. In this study, Multiple Correspondence Analysis (MCA), an exploratory data analysis technique was used to explore the roadway, traffic, crash, and pedestrian-related variables influencing pedestrian crashes. This study used the data from Government of Tamilnadu Road Accident Traffic Management System (RADMS) database, to analyse accident data of nine years (2009–2017) related to pedestrian crashes. The results of the study show that crashes occurring on the express highways on a multilane road are often associated with hit-and-run behaviour among drivers. Factors such as lighting conditions, location, pedestrian behaviour, crossings, and physical separation are also significantly contributing to pedestrian crashes. The key advantage of MCA is that it identifies a possible association between various contributing factors. The findings from this study will be useful for state transport authorities to improve countermeasures for mitigating pedestrian crashes and fatalities.     

Managing Customer Relations in a Modern Business Environment: Towards an Ecosystem-Based Sustainable CRM Model

The adoption of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) has witnessed tremendous growth across sectors, geographies, and management cultures in the last several decades. The perception of CRM as an IT-based tool has undergone a paradigm shift and is now treated as a strategic indulgence by modern-day businesses where IT is an indispensable enabler. CRM has garnered the interest of both academicians and practitioners over the years. In this article, the authors establish the value of sustainability in CRM and make an attempt at proposing a conceptual framework for modern businesses through its integration with various social networking sites that produces volumes of real-time data. The article also explores the importance of Customer Experience Management (CEM). The authors provide a thorough investigation of CRM models in the period of 1990 to 2016 through a survey of the literature explaining the need for managing experiences and engagement around existing CRM processes. In addition to exploring the intricate relationship between CRM and CEM, the authors also provide an interactive ecosystem-based framework for the creation of a sustainable CRM framework.     

The occurrence of vulnerable seagrass species Halophila beccarii Ascherson, 1871 from restored mangrove of Koduvally Estuary,south‐west coast of India

The ocean turf grass, Halophila beccarii Ascherson, 1871 was recorded for the first time in the intertidal region of the restored mangrove ecosystem of the Koduvally Estuary on the south‐west coast of India. It was found co‐existing in the shallow muddy area of the mangroves, dominated by mangrove trees of Rhizophora mucronata and Sonneratia alba, and macroalgae, Ulva sp., Enteromorpha sp. and Chaetomorpha sp. The meadow is sparsely scattered with shoots near the mangroves, with a mean density of 720 shoots/m². Details regarding the morphology and hydrographic conditions are described. The occurrence of H. beccarii in the Koduvally estuary is an encouraging sign of improved ecosystem health through mangrove restoration. The development of seagrass meadow in the estuary will improve the sediment stability and water quality. A further comprehensive study on the spatiotemporal variation of this species in the estuary is also recommended for conservation and management of this vulnerable seagrass species.     

REVIEW OF LITERATURE ON WORKING CAPITAL MANAGEMENT AND FUTURE RESEARCH AGENDA

The purpose of this study is to take a stock of what has been studied on working capital management (WCM) so far and ascertain the factors which are more likely to be impacted by poor WCM. Moreover, it aims to spell out the areas for further research on WCM so that the body of knowledge can be expanded. A systematic literature review of the research works on WCM has been performed using Google Scholar. Articles with citations of 50 and above as of June 05, 2018 are considered for the detailed citation based analysis. Further, classification of such articles has been done on the basis of common themes followed by a thorough content analysis. The citation based analysis suggests that there is a growing popularity of studies related to WCM in recent times. However, majority of the impactful studies are published in relatively lower category journals. This further intrigues us to explore the content of such studies. Based on the content, the studies are classified under five different themes. It is found that majority of the highly cited articles have examined the relation between the WCM and profitability of the firms. Moreover, repetitive uses of few proxies in such studies have also been identified. This finding most probably explains the reason behind so many highly cited articles getting published in relatively lower category journals. In view of this, this study tries to explore further scope of research on WCM and lists down potential research questions for the future researches. Firstly, it provides an idea about the most cited area of researches related to WCM and the recent growth of studies in this domain. Academicians can decide upon their future area of research based on the findings related to the proxies and outcome from these studies. Secondly, it shows the most popular avenue of publishing the articles related to WCM which will certainly motivate the researchers to pursue such study. It has been found from the analysis that majority of the impactful articles are published in lower category journals. Therefore, this study identifies the reason behind the same and lists down some innovative research questions to provide some future research directions. Thirdly, the finance managers can use this finding to identify the relevant consequences of poor WCM. Finally, it can serve as a reference point for all future ideas related to WCM. The paper classifies the present literature on WCM into five major themes and performs a content analysis of the same. This is essential as the content analysis highlights different proxies used as inputs which effectively drive efficient WCM. Moreover, the study also identifies the huge scope of future research in the domain of WCM. According to our limited knowledge, such extensive literature review on WCM is rare.