Business Commons^™

Lean Six Sigma And The Australian Business Excellence Framework: An Exploratory Case Within Local Government, Oriana Price, Matthew P. Pepper, Matthew Stewart

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine a contextualized local government case study of the application of Lean Six Sigma (LSS) in conjunction with the Australian Business Excellence Framework (ABEF) to highlight the importance of a good strategic fit between LSS and organizational objectives before implementation.

Design/methodology/approach A local government council is used in a case study-based approach. Organizational artefacts and documents were used for data collection in conjunction with interviews from senior executives within the organization.

Findings Results indicate that when used in conjunction with the ABEF, LSS provides focus on organizational learning practices embedded within the …

Hard To Reach: Examining The National Disability Insurance Scheme Experience - A Case Study In Wollongong, Freda C. Hui, Corinne L. Cortese, Mona Nikidehaghani, Sandra H. Chapple, Kellie M. Mccombie

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

We report on interviews conducted to examine the effectiveness of the Australian National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). Our aims were to assess the effectiveness of the NDIS in communicating with people with disabilities who are socio‐economically disadvantaged, to consider the types of assistance required, and to provide recommendations to improve the NDIS. Our interviewees are characterised as ‘hard to reach’, a cohort that is missing out on benefits they might receive under the NDIS because of the socioeconomic disadvantage that compounds their disability hardship. Some of our key findings were that many of our interviewees were unaware of the NDIS, …

The Introduction Of Well-Being Into The Curriculum Of An Executive Mba Program: The Sydney Business School As A Reflective Case Study, Lee Styger, Lauren P. Richardson

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

There is hardly an established university anywhere in the world that does not have, or aspire to have, an MBA program. Few universities, however, have dedicated Executive MBA (EMBA) programs and of those universities that do, there is much confusion regarding what constitutes an EMBA. For example, some university providers suggest that an EMBA is simply an extension of the full-time MBA program that is offered to part-time students. Other university providers claim that an EMBA is a stand-alone and differentiated program, consisting of a bespoke curriculum, designed for the mature executive.

Technological Innovation In The Maritime Industry: The Case Of Remote Pilotage And Enhanced Navigational Assistance, Benjamin Brooks, Tim Coltman, Miles Yang

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

Advances in technological innovation have been deployed to support autonomous or semi-autonomous vehicles in many industries. A question that remains unanswered is why very little progress has been made in remote pilotage over the past 15 years. This paper draws together theories from innovation management and the high reliability organisation literatures to shed light on this question. Using a case study of two Australian ports, we examine a business case for remote pilotage demonstrating that despite positive cost benefit models, ambiguities in benefits exist throughout the ecosystem. The discussion sheds light on unique challenges that Port executives face where it …

Oil-Related Shocks And Macroeconomic Adjustment Under Different Nominal Exchange Rate Policies: The Case Of The Libyan Economy, Issa Saleh Ali, Charles Harvie

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

Libya is a country heavily dependent on its oil sector since the 1960s and recently has experienced a considerable increase in oil revenue as a result of increased oil prices particularly after 2000 and oil production rehabilitation since 2011. Like many natural resource-rich developing countries, however, the country has suffered from widespread corruption, including that related to old oil production contracts and a cumbersome bureaucracy, which has resulted in misuse of oil revenues and poor economic performance. By 2011, the country experienced a civil war and political turmoil for a period of eight months.1 The civil war, in conjunction with …

Green Intraprenurial Flexibility Towards Sustaining Competitive Advantage: A Case Of South Asian Context, G D. Samarasinghe, Ananda Wickramasinghe, Helan Ramya Gamage, Nalin Abeysekera

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

This study explores how green based intrapreneurial flexibility affects sustainable business performance of the Sri Lankan hotel industry. A survey was administered to a random sample of senior managers of hotels in Sri Lanka. Linear regression analysis revealed a significant path coefficient which explained green based intrapreneurial flexibility positively influenced sustainable competitive advantage. The findings suggest that hotel industry policy makers develop green specific intrapreneurial capabilities so that they can quickly adapt their green based product and service offerings in responding to changes of the green market requirements by focusing on green based new venture creation, green innovation, green related …

Case Study: Transfield And Tenex: Endurance And Weakness In Two Migrant Family Businesses In Australia, Mary Barrett

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

Transfield is one of Australia's most prominent construction companies. The name itself: "trans" meaning across and "field", which suggests open spaces, reflects the firm's origins as a venture founded by two Italian emigrants, Carlo Salteri and Franco Belgiorni-Nettis, who crossed huge distances to Australia before establishing their own firm.

Case Study: The Al-Awadhi Brothers: The Story Of Two Emirati Entrepreneurs, Maryam Khazaeli, Mary Barrett

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

For centuries, families of transnational Sunni Arabs, or Persians both Sunni and Shiite, have migrated from southern Iran to the Arab coast of the Persian Gulf. In fact, Iranian groups living on the coast of the Persian Gulf have generally looked more to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) than to Iranian groups inland (Potter, 2009). They have maintained a "dual existence", owning houses in two or more countries and speaking multiple languages (Nadjmabadi, 2010). This has been a source of economic benefit to both Iran and the UAE, at least until the recent political unrest in the region. Many Iranians …

Governmental Influences On The Evolution Of Agricultural Cooperatives In Vietnam: An Institutional Perspective With Case Studies, Anne Ngoc Vo, V Le

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

Using an institutionalist approach as the main framework, this research examines the evolution of Vietnamese agricultural cooperatives over the last six decades through four distinct phases - the voluntary collectivization period of 1954-1975, the compulsory collectivization period of 1975-1981, the de-collectivization period of 1981-1997 and the neo-collectivization period since 1997. Based on two case studies, this research examines the role of the Vietnamese government in the development of Vietnamese agricultural cooperatives. It argues that a stable legal environment and appropriate government support are extremely important for the successful development of cooperatives. In terms of theoretical contribution, the study calls for …

The Current Retirement System In Australia Needs To Be More Attuned To A Mobile International Workforce: A Case For Reform, Rhys Cormick, John A. Mclaren

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

Dealing with the fiscal impacts of Australia's ageing population is potentially the most important issue for the next 30 years. The majority of countries in the developed world are facing an ageing population due to sustained low fertility and increased life expectancy. In order to reduce the fiscal burden following this decreased labour force participation and increased age-related spending, governments must appropriately design retirement savings systems to protect their budget, the taxpayers and the elderly. Individuals are increasingly taking up employment in foreign countries. Such international labour mobility provides a number of economic benefits for both the home and host …

Enacting Responsible Leadership: The Case Of Singapore, Carolyn Koh, Mario Fernando, Trevor A. Spedding

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

The literature on responsible leadership focus predominantly on a western context with limited empirical studies reported from Asia. To address this gap, this paper aims to explore responsible leadership from a non-western context focusing on Singapore. Case studies developed from face-to-face interviews with 20 influential Singaporean leaders were analysed and similarities and differences between and within cases were utilised to identify contextual factors that influence responsible leadership. The findings reveal that Singaporean leaders possess traits/values that make them both responsible and effective leaders. However, contextual factors such as national culture and ethos of the nation as well as relational intelligence …

Analysing Banks' Intermediation And Operational Performance Using The Hicks-Moorsteen Tfp Index: The Case Of Iran, Amir Arjomandi, Abbas Valadkhani, Martin O'Brien

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

In order to analyse the impact of policy reforms on the performance of the banking sector in Iran we present a decomposition of the Hicks-Moorsteen Total Factor Productivity (TFP). This entails a comparison of both the intermediate and operating performances of different types of banks in the pre- and post-reform eras. Our results show that under the intermediation approach, state-owned banks (public banks) were considerably more efficient than private banks in the post-regulation period. In contrast, under the operating approach, private banks were fully technically efficient and mix efficient in both pre and post-reform eras. This paper highlights the importance …

Superannuation Policy Processes: The Case Of Mysuper And Superstream, Fariba Ahmadi Pirshahid, Mary Kaidonis, Kathy Rudkin

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

The Australian superannuation system has been praised as one of the best in the world. Yet a major review by the Cooper Committee in 2010 found numerous problems that have been undermining the performance of the system, proposing a number of recommendations for improvement. The subsequent adoption and implementation of two such recommendations saw the introduction of 'MySuper' and 'SuperStream' by the government resulting in the most significant reform in the superannuation industry since the introduction of the Superannuation Guarantee (SG) in 1992. This paper critically analyses: the relevant Deloitte; and Financial Services Council and Ernst and Young's report used …

Neglected Stakeholder Groups: A Case Study Of Recreational Vehicle Users In Tasmania, Anne Hardy, Ulrike Gretzel, Mark Wickham

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

Traditional stakeholder mapping tools have concentrated on the identification of issues such as power, urgency and predictability of stakeholder groups. Yet they do not sufficiently address the ability of neglected stakeholder groups to communicate, gain and use their power when issues affecting them arise, suggesting that traditional approaches have to be updated to accommodate suddenly emerging stakeholder groups. This paper uses the case study of Recreational Vehicle Users in Tasmania, Australia, to explore the issue. In doing so it illustrates the risks of ignoring these groups, particularly when developing public policy. The paper proposes a more iterative and consultative approach …

Linking The Principles Of Supply Chain Management To Aid And Development: A Case Study - Waters Of Ayole', Mark Edwards, Lee Styger

Sydney Business School - Papers

The current protocols used in humanitarian aid management date back to the 1970's. Since the introduction of these protocols, there is little evidence to suggest that a paradigm improvement in overall efficiency has occurred in humanitarian aid compared for example, to industrial process improvements within the same time frame. Fundamentally, humanitarian aid is an end-to-end process demonstrating similar aspects to any other business organisation (for profit or not). This raises the possibility that the use of supply chain theories, including the Supply Chain Operating Reference (SCOR), are relevant and can play a part in developing initiatives to improve the end-to-end …

Public Interest Litigation: Making The Case In Australia, Andrea Durbach, Luke Mcnamara, Simon Rice, Mark Rix

Sydney Business School - Papers

Litigation is widely and appropriately recognised as an important component of the public interest advocacy 'toolkit'. Yet, little attention has been paid in Australian research and scholarship to an important question: under what circumstances is public interest litigation (PIL) an effective way to bring about progressive social change? Informed by a review of the international literature on PIL, the authors of this article argue for the importance of drawing on Australia's rich history with PIL to develop a solid empirical evidence base which can inform future decision about the strategic employment of PIL in campaigns to address the concerns and …

Exploring Hegemonic Change In China: A Case Of Accounting Evolution, Lina Xu, Corinne Cortese, Eagle Zhang

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

Purpose - This paper provides an understanding of how accounting systems have changed across four distinct periods of hegemonic leadership in China.

Design/methodology/approach - Using Gramsci's concept of hegemony, periods of leadership and accounting change throughout Chinese history are examined, including the Confucian tradition, the rise of the socialist system followed by the Cultural Revolution under the Maoist era, and the move towards the socialist-market system in the Dengist era.

Findings - This paper shows how political leaders in these different time periods effectively achieved leadership by destroying an existing hegemony, creating a new ideology, and implanting this into people's …

You Never Know What Question You Are Going To Answer: Creating Effective Tension For Effective Learning Using Business Case Studies, Palli Mulla K A Chandrakumara, Ananda Wickramasinghe

Sydney Business School - Papers

Case studies in business management have been used as an effective approach and tool for enhancing students' critical thinking and problem-solving skills by providing opportunities for student to apply appropriate theories, concepts and models for real world issues faced by organisations. Despite the popularity of the case study approach in business and management education, it is self evident that the effective use of case studies to achieve above mentioned benefits is challenging and problematic mainly because case studies are misused and abused in different ways, including just adopting a popular method, just asking students to read and answer the questions, …

Measuring The Banking Efficiency And Productivity Changes Using The Hicks-Moorsteen Approach: The Case Of Iran, Amir Arjomandi, Charles Harvie, Abbas Valadkhani

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This study is the first to use a comprehensive decomposition of the Hicks–Moorsteen TFP index developed by O’Donnell (2010a) to analyse efficiency and productivity changes in a banking context. The paper investigates the efficiency and productivity growth of the Iranian banking industry between 2003 and 2008, encompassing pre- and post-2005-reform years. The advantage of this approach over the popular constant-returns-to-scale Malmquist productivity index is that it is free from any assumptions concerning firms’ returns to scale. We assume that the production technology exhibits variable returns to scale. Our findings show that the banking industry’s technical efficiency level – which had …

A Comparative Case Study Of The Internationalization Strategies Of Malaysian, Singaporean And Taiwanese Firms, Ah Ba Sim

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

Comparative empirical research on the internationalization strategies of Asian multinational enterprises (MNEs) from countries at different levels of development is lacking. This paper examines and analyzes the internationalization characteristics and strategies of MNEs from three Asian countries at two different levels of development. Primary data from matched sample firms from Malaysia (a fast developing economy) and Singapore and Taiwan (representing newly industrialized economies) in the textile and electronics industries are used for this study. The findings indicate some differences among the Malaysian, Singaporean and Taiwanese MNEs. These differences and their implications are examined. The empirical findings, particularly the contextual aspects …

Exploring The Role Of Marketing Strategy And New Product Development In Long-Term Success Of Market Acceptance: A Case Study Of A Local Product In Thailand, Pensri Jaroenwanit, Uraiporn Kattiyapornpong

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

This paper aims to present the exploratory study of the role of marketing strategy and new product development in achieving long-term success of market acceptance in the context of a local product in Thailand. It is part of a large project, only qualitative study is included in this paper. The research methodology comprised documentary research, focus group discussion, and in-depth interview. Participants included local business representatives and customers who live in the regional area and have purchased and consumed the regional products in the last twelve months. The exploratory findings showed the importance of understanding the role of marketing strategy …

Culture Of Social Institutions And Behavioural Manifestations In Entrepreneurship Development: A South-Asian Case, Helan R. Gamage, Ananda Wickramasinghe

Sydney Business School - Papers

This paper is based on the South Asian culture, social institutions and entrepreneurship in particular to Sri Lankan entrepreneurship. Sri Lankan culture demonstrates various complex and unique behavioral patterns. Sri Lankan entrepreneurial culture can be identified to have evolved through two different routes. One can be traced to the origins of Sri Lankan civilization and the other to the western influence, originating from the Industrial Revolution, and imposed through colonization which systematically destroyed the indigenous feudal system. Moreover, the ideology of entrepreneurship training and education in Sri Lanka is exclusively western in origin and character. Observations of this research showed …

The Use Of Team-Based Learning As An Approach To Increased Engagement And Learning For Marketing Students: A Case Study, Paul Chad

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

Marketing educators are often faced with poor preclass preparation by students, declining student interest in attending classes as the semester progresses, and student complaints regarding previous bad experiences with team assessment activities. Teambased learning (TBL) is an innovative teaching strategy using semiformalized guidelines aimed to enhance student engagement and improve teamwork and, hence, overcome the typical problems faced by educators. This case study examines the firsttime use of TBL in a postgraduate marketing subject at an Australian university. The results indicate that the TBL innovation has a positive influence on student engagement and offers opportunities to assist learning. The study …

Predicting Online Travel Purchases: The Case Of Switzerland, Christian Laesser, Anita Zehrer

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This paper examines why and under what conditions prospective travellers complete their bookings through online services compared to other methods. The study is based on a representative survey within 1,898 Swiss households, recording their travel behaviour during the entire year 2007. The results show that the likelihood of booking online increases if someone is drawn to a website to gather information in the first place and if the product sold through the website is transparent and well-understood (either 'per se' or because the customer is familiar with the product) or if any other booking-related communication would impose a financial charge …

Centrelink Prosecutions At The Employment/Benefit Nexus: A Case Study Of Wollongong, Freda Hui, Lee Moerman, Kathy Rudkin

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This report examines financial and social issues pertaining to Centrelink prosecutions for overpayments of unemployment‐related social security benefits. Specifically, it examines the circumstances of prosecutions of those returning to work, and those in precarious casual employment. A sample of overpayment prosecutions in the Wollongong area of New South Wales from July 2008 to June 2010 is profiled and analysed.

The Implementation Of Authentic Activities For Learning: A Case Study In Finance Education, Mara K. Koplin, Chi Fun Freda Hui

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This paper seeks to demonstrate how assessment tasks set in a finance subject contribute to an authentic learning experience. Authentic learning has been shown to help connect students’ classroom learning to the outside world. Linking what students are learning in class to the real world enables them to better understand the problems to be faced when dealing with incomplete information, while also engaging them more fully. In this preliminary study we explore the attributes of an authentic learning experience. The assessment task requires each student to research the topics covered in class in relationship to a country that they have …

The Factors Of Sme Cluster Developments In A Developing Country: The Case Of Indonesian Clusters, Mukhammad Kholid Mawardi, Ty Choi, Nelson Perera

Sydney Business School - Papers

Since cluster development factors become a critical issue in the debate of the industrial cluster literature, several scholars have attempted to seek the variables that influence the cluster growth. This paper presents the case of the wood furniture cluster of Bukir- Indonesia to explain the development of SME clusters by identifying its influential factors. We utilize the model proposed by Parrilli (2009) that includes collective efficiency, social capital, and policy inducement variables to explore the driving factors of this cluster growth. Based on the qualitative approach, this case study found that collective efficiency and social capital affect the development of …

Fractals And Self-Similarity In Economics: The Case Of A Two-Sector Growth Model, Davide La Torre, Simone Marsiglio, Fabio Privileggi

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

We study a stochastic, discrete-time, two-sector optimal growth model in which the production of the homogeneous consumption good uses a Cobb-Douglas technology, combining physical capital and an endogenously determined share of human capital. Education is intensive in human capital as in Lucas (1988), but the marginal returns of the share of human capital employed in education are decreasing, as suggested by Rebelo (1991). Assuming that the exogenous shocks are i.i.d. and affect both physical and human capital, we build specific configurations for the primitives of the model so that the optimal dynamics for the state variables can be converted, through …

Australia: The Challenge Of Father-Daughter Succession In Family Business: A Case Study From The Land Down Under, Mary Barrett, Ken Moores

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This chapter examines the case of an Australian woman, Roz, who succeeded her father as the CEO of a large fourth-generation family business, Hawkins Family Group, in the traditionally male-dominated transport industry. The case is described in three phases. First, we outline Australian culture how it influences business life, including the position of women in the Australian workforce especially as managers and entrepreneurs. We then describe the history of the Hawkins Family Group and how Roz eventually came to lead it. Finally, we return to aspects of Australian values and culture and other literature to draw conclusions about the case. …

Customer Satisfaction Measurement For The State-Owned Banks In The Developing Countries - The Case Of Bangladesh, Muhammad Saifuddin Khondaker, Monir Zaman Mir

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

Customer Satisfaction has become an imponant aspect of measuring performance. particularly for the banking and finance industry. As most banks and finance organizations offer Similar products and services. Improving customer satisfaction and loyalty is the most important factor in maintaining as well as increasing market share for these organizations. Customer satisfaction is a grossly neglected area for performance measurement in almost all Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Bangladesh is no exception. Like most LDCs. Bangladesh is also com:ng under pressure from the IMF. World Bank. ADB. etc. to reform its inefficient financial sector. Anecdotal evidence suggests that state·owned commercial banks …