Business Commons^™

Mobile Dm Coupon Promotion In Japan: A Case Study On Response Behavior Changes In Services Consumption, Shahriar Akter

Shahriar Akter

This chapter investigates the changes in customers’ responses to mobile direct mail (DM) coupons on the shop visit probability (SVP) of a beauty parlor. Two experiments were carried out to examine the promotional effects of mobile DM coupons. The first experiment, conducted in 2004, compared mobile DM coupons with postcard DM coupons. The mobile DM coupons were found to have no effect on SVP, although positive effects were observed for postcard DM coupons. The second experiment, conducted in 2005 with three types of mobile DM coupons, compared the responses of new customers with those of repeat customers. The results varied …

Poverty Reduction And Vincentian Higher Education Institutions, Marco Tavanti, Craig Mousin

Craig B. Mousin

Dr. Marco Tavanti and Craig Mousin discuss with Dr. Scott Kelly the university's responsibility for poverty reduction as expressed in the conferences and special number of Vincentian Heritage "What would Vincent do? Vincentian Higher Education and Poverty Reduction"

Prediction Markets To Forecast Electricity Demand, Peter Cramton, Luciano De Castro

Luciano I. de Castro

Forecasting electricity demand for future years is an essential step in resource planning. A common approach is for the system operator to predict future demand from the estimates of individual distribution companies. However, the predictions thus obtained may be of poor quality, since the reporting incentives are unclear. We propose a prediction market as a form of forecasting future demand for electricity. We describe how to implement a simple prediction market for continuous variables, using only contracts based on binary variables. We also discuss specific issues concerning the implementation of such a market.

Indigenous Ways Of Teaching And Knowing: A Case Study Of Teaching Indigenous Arts Management, Michelle Evans

Michelle Evans

No abstract provided.

The Illegal-Settlements Myth, David Phillips

David M. Phillips

No abstract provided.

A Refined Basket Of Goods Approach For Comparing Construction Costs Between Countries, Rick Best

Rick Best

Most comparisons of construction industry performance require that construction costs be converted to a common base. Existing mechanisms for such conversions produce unreliable results. A proposed method for producing industry-specific conversion factors was tested using a single building type. A basket of materials and labour was identified and weighted to reflect the cost share of each item in a completed project. Prices for the basket were gathered in three cities and simple construction specific conversion indices were calculated based on the construction purchasing power of each currency. The construction purchasing power parities (CPPPs) showed marked differences from other available conversion …

Are Hot Markets Driven By Hot Resource Shares Or Hot Commodities?, Jo-Ann Suchard, Li-Anne Woo

Li-Anne Woo

Cycles in initial public offer (IPO) underpricing have been historically linked to both the proportion and pricing of resource-based IPOs issued relative to the entire population of IPOs. In addition, IPOs in the less diversified resource sector are exposed to changes in underlying commodity market prices which directly affect firm valuation. However, prior IPO research has largely ignored the various risk factors affecting resource firms. In this paper, we explicitly consider the explanatory power of 'traditional' IPO risk factors and augment these with specific risk characteristics associated with the resource sector, such as the underlying changes in resource commodity prices, …

A New Look At Mutual Fund Performance, Laurie Prather, William Bertin, Thomas Henker

Laurie Prather

This study goes beyond the scope of the typical analysis of mutual fund performance by considering a broader set of fund-specific factors uniquely categorized in terms of their impact on returns. Also unique to this study is a detailed exposition of the linkages between fund characteristics and performance. Traditional regression techniques explore these relationships in an attempt to predict fund performance, while the sample of funds examined is screened for survivor bias in a non-conventional fashion. The results suggest that our unique categories of fund popularity, agility, and growth, as well as the standard cost and managerial factors are relevant …

Intraday Reit Liquidity, William Bertin, Paul Kofman, David Michayluk, Laurie Prather

Laurie Prather

This study measures and analyzes the liquidity differences between Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and other common stocks. The intraday variations documented in this study have implications for the appropriate timing of trades to minimize transaction costs and the substitutability of investments if illiquidity is priced. The findings reveal intraday patterns indicating lower liquidity for REITs than for common stocks when the liquidity measure is friction-based. In contrast, activity measures exhibit higher liquidity levels for REITs than for common stocks but this difference is only statistically significant at the beginning of the trading day. The findings also indicate that the …

The Intraday Price Behavior Of Australian Exchange Traded Options And Warrants, William Bertin, David Michayluk, Laurie Prather

Laurie Prather

This study focuses on the price discovery process in Australian option and warrant markets. Characterizing these two markets in terms of their cost structures and institutional features, we formally test competing price discovery hypotheses. The general findings indicate that the warrants market is the dominant market suggesting that their lower trading cost outweigh their less attractive institutional features. Additionally, we find that idiosyncratic differences among firms may result in a clientele effect thus providing justification for the coexistence of these seemingly redundant markets.

Issues In Property Management: Caravan Parks- Housing On The Fringe- The Frankston View, Lynne Armitage, Victoria Brown

Lynne Armitage

Whilst investment pressure from excess funds generated by compulsory superannuation contributions is creating opportunity for major international investment in property, at the current extreme of the property investment continuum lies the caravan park. Here, owners and investors also seek a positive return on investment but are stymied by a complex web of concerns which differ in character, though sometimes not in substance, from those of better recognised property investment vehicles.

Across Australia ownership of such parks is widely distributed amongst generally small investors many of whom are owner-operators of the park. This piecemeal pattern of ownership and the very broad …

Privacy Concern In Google Voice Call Recording, Michael Katz, James Tuthill

Michael Katz

The Federal Communications Commission, taking note of AT&T's complaint, has written to Google with questions about its call blocking. But the implications for our privacy of software-managed call services like Google Voice are a much greater threat to consumers, and that's where the FCC should direct its energy - immediately.

Restructuring In Voluntary Administration - Evidence From Australian Listed Public Companies, James Routledge, David Gadenne

James Routledge

Introduction of the statutory voluntary administration (VA) process in mid 1993 represented a significant change to corporate insolvency law in Australia in providing greater opportunity for companies to attempt to resolve their financial distress. The final decision regarding the administration outcome is determined by company creditors, who can conclude the relatively short administration period by supporting a deed of company arrangement (DOCA) or have the company wound-up in a statutory liquidation. The focus of this paper is on the relationship between financial information available at the time a company enters VA and the VA outcome. In particular, we explore how …

Do Profit Maximizers Take Cold Showers?, Neil Campbell, Jeffrey Kline

Neil Campbell

A firm takes a "cold shower" if removal of a protective subsidy induces investment in a cost-reducing technology. We show that if the investment lowers marginal cost everywhere, then profit maximizers never take cold showers. However, if the investment does not lower marginal cost everywhere, a profit maximizer may take a cold shower.

Crisis In American Information Systems Education: Innovations To Address The Threat Of Offshoring, Kate Kaiser, Erran Carmel, Michael Gallivan, Monica Adya, Arkulgud Ramprasad, Amar Gupta

Monica Adya

Our classrooms are nearly empty. The job prospects for our graduates are bleak. Offshoring is reconfiguring the American information technology industry. What are we to do? After years of unprecedented growth, demand, and skill shortages, IT faculty find themselves in a new environment. As a short- term solution, some faculty are scrambling to develop and redesign courses. This is not enough and will not sustain the fundamental shifts needed in a global economy. How can individual faculty, Information Systems departments, and schools respond to survive the rapidly changing landscape? The situation calls for innovations in academic delivery. Academics must serve …

Culturally Compatible Websites: Applying Trompenaars Dimensions To Web Design, Sudhir Kale, Sangita De

Sudhir H. Kale

Rising e-commerce volumes the world over provide unprecedented opportunities to global marketers for expanding their markets using the Internet. The Web has now made it possible to reach an audience of hundreds of millions of people at one point in time. However, significant culture-driven differences exist in the way audiences across the world will process site cues and react to websites. This paper reviews existing literature on culture and website design and goes on to discuss the impact of culture on web communication using Trompenaars’ (1993) cultural dimensions.

The Chicken Or The Egg? The Trade-Off Between Bank Non Interest Income And Net Interest Margins, Barry Williams, Gulasekaran Rajaguru

Barry Williams

This study considers the time series relationship between bank non interest income and bank net interest margins in Australia using panel vector autoregressions. It is found that increases in bank non interest income are being used to supplement decreases in net interest margins, but that the magnitude of the increase in non interest income is smaller than the decrease in net interest margins. It is also found that increases in non interest income predate declines in margin income, suggesting that Australian banks were pro-active in the process of disintermediation. The agency risks of increased bank non interest income are explored …

Agency Differences In Professional Family Businesses: The Known And The Unknown, Ken Moores, Justin Craig

Justin B. Craig

We suggest in this paper one of the reasons that researchers concur agency costs in family firms are more complex than originally thought maybe related to the lack of conceptual clarity. This, we propose, is because when frameworks and theories are borrowed and enthusiastically embraced without attention to clearly defining concepts from original sources, conceptual clarity is clouded. Clarity is achieved by specifying the conditions necessary for these concepts to be applicable in generating originally envisaged consequences. We present the conditions necessary for the optimum applicability of original agency theoretical concepts in family firms and tentatively distinguish between what is …

Get To Work, Jennifer Keil

Jennifer Keil

A Liquidity Motivated Algorithm For Discerning Trade Direction, David Michayluk, Laurie Prather

Laurie Prather

Most exchanges do not report trade direction thus researchers and traders must deduce whether a trade is buyer or seller initiated since this information is required to evaluate models of bid-ask spread components and to understand the market for immediacy. Algorithms that assign trade direction based on the proximity to bid or ask quotes are easily implemented but ignore information readily discernable from orders, changes in the quoted depth and subsequent price movements. Using the New York Stock Exchange Trades, Orders and Quotes database, systematic biases in existing trade direction algorithms are documented that can be rectified by recognizing that …

Building Relationships And Resilience In The Workplace: Construction Of A Workplace Bullying Training Program, Sara Branch, Jane Murray

Jane Murray

In recent years a growing number of interventions have been designed to reduce the impact of workplace bullying within organisations. However, due to a lack of research into this area relatively little is known about the efficacy of such programs. This paper presents an overview of a longitudinal research project being constructed to determine the impact of training on workplace bullying to assist employees to manage workplace bullying when it occurs. We propose an intervention which includes restorative justice practices, emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills training may be able to assist in reducing the impact of antisocial behaviours. The project …

Income Strategies Of Listed And Unlisted Companies: An Empirical Study Of Accounting Method Choices, Keith Duncan

Keith Duncan

This paper explores whether the political and contracting environments for listed and unlisted companies gives rise to different wealth incentives for management to judiciously select a portfolio of accounting procedures for the firm. The analysis indicates significant differences in the method choices made by the managers of listed and unlisted firms. For the listed firms, size as a proxy for political costs is negatively related to portfolio choice, supporting the political cost hypothesis. In addition, leverage and directors' percentage ownership are positively related to portfolio choice and thus support the debt contracting cost hypothesis. In contrast, none of the contracting …

The Road To Legitimacy: A Study Of Startups And Their Established Competitors In The Australian Wine Industry (Summary), Clay Dibrell, Aaron Johnson, Peter Davis, Ken Moores, Justin Craig

Justin B. Craig

A barrier to startup success is the liability of newness. One strategy to overcome this obstacle is through gaining venture legitimacy. Legitimacy is defined as acceptance, suitability, and appeal of the startup as judged by external and internal stakeholders such as the marketplace, industry competitors, and employees. Through attainment of legitimacy, a startup now has increased opportunities to access resources required for survival and growth. Drawing from institutional theory, a startup should heed external institutional forces and adapt to isomorphic pressures to gain legitimacy in an industry. Alternatively, a resource-based view perspective suggests that internal coordination and marshaling of resources …

Adventure Racing And Organizational Behavior: Using Eco Challenge Video Clips To Stimulate Learning, Amy Kenworthy-U'Ren, Anthony Erickson

Anthony Erickson

In this article, the Eco Challenge race video is presented as a teaching tool for facilitating theory-based discussion and application in organizational behavior (OB) courses. Before discussing the intricacies of the video series itself, the authors present a pedagogically based rationale for using reality TV—based video segments in a classroom setting. They then describe the Eco Challenge race series, with an overview of how it is used to facilitate application of course concepts, encourage attention and interest in the course, and provide a frame of reference for other experiential activities and assessment in the course. Readers are encouraged to use …

Poverty Reduction And Vincentian Higher Education Institutions, Marco Tavanti, Craig Mousin

Marco Tavanti

Dr. Marco Tavanti and Craig Mousin discuss with Dr. Scott Kelly the university's responsibility for poverty reduction as expressed in the conferences and special number of Vincentian Heritage "What would Vincent do? Vincentian Higher Education and Poverty Reduction"

Multi-Perspective Performance Reporting, Continuous Improvement And Organisational Performance, Errol Iselin, John Sands, Mia Lokman

Errol Iselin

The use of multi-perspective performance reporting systems (MPRS), such as the balanced scorecard (BSC), has become widespread. The BSC reports performance about four perspectives (learning and growth, internal business processes, customer, and financials). Although these systems are important (Libby et al., 2004), research in the area has only just scratched the surface, hence the motivation for this study. Continuous improvement systems (CIS) are another management accounting innovation. These systems constantly look for ways to improve performance and, if implemented, will be used in conjunction with performance reporting systems. This research studies the effectiveness of CIS in organisations using MPRS. The …

Alleviating Poverty Through Profitable Partnerships: Globalization, Markets And Economic Well-Being, Patricia Werhane, Scott Kelley, Laura Hartman, Dennis Moberg

Scott Kelley

In this book, the authors approach poverty alleviation from an atypical perspective. The thesis is that poverty can be reduced, if not eradicated, both locally and globally, but this will occur only if we change our shared narratives about global free enterprise, and only if we recalibrate our mindsets regarding how poverty issues are most effectively addressed. They argue that poverty amelioration cannot be effected by the traditional means employed during the last century—foreign aid from developed nations and/or from non-profit international organizations. Rather, the authors present evidence which demonstrates that a mindset embracing initiatives developed by global corporations in …

Ideacheck: Bcg Report On The Innovation Imperative In Manufacturing, Kwanghui Lim

Kwanghui Lim

In March, the Boston Consulting Group published a report on "The Innovation Imperative in Manufacturing". The report assesses the level of competitiveness of US firms, both across different states of the US as well as in comparison to other countries. Here is my IdeaCHECK on the report: http://cite.org.au/store/viewitem.asp?idProduct=573.

Optimising The Internal Value Chain: Principles And Practices, Mark Spence, Sudhir Kale

Sudhir H. Kale

The employee–customer interface in hedonic services requires high quality interactions at key touch points to ensure experiences are positively remembered. We propose an approach that combines service blueprinting with internal marketing to achieve these experiences. While internal marketing suggests using marketing techniques for hiring, retaining and motivating employees, the literature in this field has been largely independent of each employee’s contribution to the internal value chain. Service blueprinting is a useful approach which makes explicit the value creation processes used in service production. No study has thus far connected the blueprint (which identifies functions to be performed) to internal marketing …

Optimising The Internal Value Chain: Principles And Practices, Mark Spence, Sudhir Kale

Mark Spence

The employee–customer interface in hedonic services requires high quality interactions at key touch points to ensure experiences are positively remembered. We propose an approach that combines service blueprinting with internal marketing to achieve these experiences. While internal marketing suggests using marketing techniques for hiring, retaining and motivating employees, the literature in this field has been largely independent of each employee’s contribution to the internal value chain. Service blueprinting is a useful approach which makes explicit the value creation processes used in service production. No study has thus far connected the blueprint (which identifies functions to be performed) to internal marketing …