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2008

University of Wollongong

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Full-Text Articles in Business

Rfid-Enabled Warehouse Optimization: Lessons From Early Adopters In The 3pl Industry, S. F. Wamba, T. R. Coltman, Katina Michael Dec 2008

Rfid-Enabled Warehouse Optimization: Lessons From Early Adopters In The 3pl Industry, S. F. Wamba, T. R. Coltman, Katina Michael

Faculty of Informatics - Papers (Archive)

This paper presents the impact of RFID technology on the picking and shipping processes of one RFID-enabled warehouse in the 3PL industry. The findings from our study confirm initial results from many studies where RFID implementation has been shown to enable business process redesign, improve data quality, real-time data collection and synchronization and enhance system integration. In this study we show that the full potential of RFID technology is dependent upon the involvement of all supply chain members involved in implementation. Moreover, firms considering implementing RFID technology need to take into account their investment in complementary assets such as employee …


Tourist Segment Compatibility, Katie Lazarevski, Sara Dolnicar Dec 2008

Tourist Segment Compatibility, Katie Lazarevski, Sara Dolnicar

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

Although market segmentation is used extensively by tourism researchers and industry, the problem of possible incompatibility of multiple segments has been widely ignored. Segment incompatibility limits the freedom of selecting a subset of attractive market segments to target thus representing a crucial consideration for the successful implementation of a market segmentation strategy. This study (1) discusses the problem of segment compatibility, (2) defines segment (in)compatibility, and (3) reports on factors which cause tourist (in)compatibility. Results indicated main factors are disrespect to environment, noisy people, attitude, meeting people, social atmosphere, information and advice. Practical implications for destination management are described.


An Investigation Of Tourists’ Patterns Of Obligation To Protect The Environment, Sara Dolnicar, Friedrich Leisch Nov 2008

An Investigation Of Tourists’ Patterns Of Obligation To Protect The Environment, Sara Dolnicar, Friedrich Leisch

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

Destinations are increasingly concerned about the environmental sustainability of the local tourism industry. A number of authors have proposed a demand-driven approach to sustainable destination management as a complementary measure to traditional supply-sided interventions. However, there is little empirical evidence to support the feasibility of such a demand-driven approach. This study contributes to this gap by investigating whether individuals who feel morally obliged to behave in an environmentally friendly manner represent useful target segments for destination management aiming to improve the ecological sustainability of the local tourism industry. Results indicate that distinctly different moral obligation segments exist that differ in …


Reconceiving Labour Law: The Labour Market Regulation Project, Andrew D. Frazer Nov 2008

Reconceiving Labour Law: The Labour Market Regulation Project, Andrew D. Frazer

Faculty of Law - Papers (Archive)

This paper reviews the recent work by Australian labour lawyers that has embraced the ‘new regulation’ and in particular the idea of law as regulation. This approach has recast the academic study of labour law as being concerned with regulation of the labour market. While much of this work has concentrated on expanding the field of labour law to include many areas of law affecting the labour market (beyond the employer-employee relationship), the work has also developed the view of law as a mechanism of state regulation. The paper examines how the ‘regulatory turn’ in Australian labour law has affected …


The Place Of Self-Actualisation In Workplace Spirituality: Evidence From Sri Lanka, Mario Fernando, V. Nilakant Nov 2008

The Place Of Self-Actualisation In Workplace Spirituality: Evidence From Sri Lanka, Mario Fernando, V. Nilakant

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

The aim of this paper is to develop a self-actualizing spirituality model. It examines the place of self-actualization in the experience of workplace spirituality of Sri Lankan business leaders. The primary method of data collection was in-depth and face-to-face interviews with 13 Sri Lankan business leaders. Within the qualitative tradition and case study method, grounded theory and data triangulation were used to analyze the data. The findings suggest that when the business leaders experience workplace spirituality, they commonly project a need to grow, become and evolve towards the ideal (ought) self. This need is primarily driven by a desire to …


The New Researcher, Graham Bowrey Nov 2008

The New Researcher, Graham Bowrey

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

Purpose This poem is a reflection of the processes and associated emotions early career academic researchers may experience in preparing, presenting and publishing their research. Design/methodology/approach: Fictional poem Findings: This poem highlights that the processes an early career academic researcher undertakes to publish his/her research isn’t necessarily the hardest lesson to learn. Rather the hardest lesson is learning to cope with the mix of emotions they will experience during the process. Research Implications: Provides early career academic researchers, and their supervisors, a guide of what they can expect to experience during the first few years during their research. Originality/Value A …


An Information System Design Theory For And Rfid University-Based Laboratory, S. F. Wamba, Katina Michael Oct 2008

An Information System Design Theory For And Rfid University-Based Laboratory, S. F. Wamba, Katina Michael

Faculty of Informatics - Papers (Archive)

RFID technology is defined as a wireless automatic identification and data capture (AIDC) technology and is considered as “the next big thing” in the management and “the next revolution in supply chain”. Recently, the topic has attracted the interest of the industrial community as well as the scientific community. Following this tendency, this paper applies an Information Systems Design Theory (ISDT) for an RFID-based University Laboratory. For practitioners, the paper provides some insights into the set-up and use of RFID laboratory in university settings, and at the same time, it offers a set of hypotheses that can be empirically tested.


Preparing Accountants For Today’S Global Business Environment: The Role Of Emotional Intelligence In Accounting Education, G. E. Jones, A. Abraham Sep 2008

Preparing Accountants For Today’S Global Business Environment: The Role Of Emotional Intelligence In Accounting Education, G. E. Jones, A. Abraham

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

The tasks and skills that are required of accounting practitioners in today’s global business environment have changed significantly since the early 1990s. Accounting practitioners are no longer merely required to undertake the tasks necessary for information provision, such as bookkeeping, data analysis and tax preparation. Instead, their roles are now extended to encompass information facilitation, thus repositioning them as knowledge professionals rather than accounting technicians. This includes a greater emphasis on the components of emotional intelligence. However, accounting students are generally not aware of this expanded role. Thus students who are attracted into accounting courses may not possess the appropriate …


Understanding The Impact Of Emerging Technologies On Process Optimization: The Case Of Rfid Technology, S. F. Wamba, Y. Bendavid Jul 2008

Understanding The Impact Of Emerging Technologies On Process Optimization: The Case Of Rfid Technology, S. F. Wamba, Y. Bendavid

Faculty of Informatics - Papers (Archive)

This paper examines the case of one supply chain in the electricity sector where RFID technology integrated with firm’s information systems acts as an enabler of process optimization. Using a business process approach and laboratory simulation, we explain how the implementation of RFID technology can increase the visibility of information at various layers of the supply chain, allowing members to gather precise information on real demand and improve replenishment processes. On the other hand, while RFID technology has the potential to automate some processes, human intervention is still required. Therefore, use case scenarios and sensitivity analysis should be carefully considered …


Outbound Tourism From China: Literature Review And Research Agenda, Byron W. Keating, A. Kriz Jul 2008

Outbound Tourism From China: Literature Review And Research Agenda, Byron W. Keating, A. Kriz

Faculty of Informatics - Papers (Archive)

The rapid growth of China's outbound tourism market has attracted a great deal of attention in recent years. However, the academic literature is still sparse in this area. Using a theoretical framework that synthesises the key processes related to destination choice, the authors undertake a systematic review of the academic literature on outbound tourism from China. Stemming from this review, the article provides some direction for future empirical research on this important topic. The authors also suggest that a new model for travel planning could be developed, suggesting that traditional destination choice models may inadequately capture the nuances of destination …


The Low Stability Of Brand-Attribute Associations Is Partly Due To Market Research Methodology, Sara Dolnicar, J. R. Rossiter Jun 2008

The Low Stability Of Brand-Attribute Associations Is Partly Due To Market Research Methodology, Sara Dolnicar, J. R. Rossiter

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

Using an experiment built into a longitudinal survey, we demonstrate that the low stability of consumers’ brand-attribute associations (see Rungie et al., 2005) can be partly explained by the prevailing methods used in market research, which can often lead consumers to construct temporary associations. To increase the proportion of stable brand-attribute associations, we recommend the following improvements in market research methods: use of a shorter, brand-prompted attribute association task; inclusion of an “don’t know this brand” option to isolate ratings of brands unknown to the individual; omission of the standard instruction to guess when uncertain; and, in cross-cultural studies, translation …


Long- And Short-Run Determinants Of The Demand For Money In The Asian-Pacific Countries: An Empirical Panel Investigation, Abbas Valadkhani May 2008

Long- And Short-Run Determinants Of The Demand For Money In The Asian-Pacific Countries: An Empirical Panel Investigation, Abbas Valadkhani

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This paper examines the long- and short-run determinants of the demand for money in six countries in the Asian-Pacific region using panel data (1975-2002). Various country-specific coefficients are allowed to capture inter-country heterogeneities. Consistent with theoretical postulates, it is found that (a) the demand for money in the long-run positively responds to real income and inversely to the interest rate spread, inflation, the real effective exchange rate, and the US real interest rate; (b) the long-run income elasticity is greater than unity; and (c) both the currency substitution and capital mobility hypotheses hold only in the long run.


Mission Or Money? Competitive Challenges Facing Public Sector Nonprofit Organisations In An Institutionalised Environment., Sara Dolnicar, H. J. Irvine, K. Lazarevski May 2008

Mission Or Money? Competitive Challenges Facing Public Sector Nonprofit Organisations In An Institutionalised Environment., Sara Dolnicar, H. J. Irvine, K. Lazarevski

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This paper exposes the impact of competitive grant funding on public sector nonprofit volunteer organisations, using institutional theory to explain developments within this sector. A conceptual model is developed from which five propositions are derived. Bushcare units, in experiencing institutional pressures, respond in ways that affect their culture, structure and routines, resulting in the possibility that their mission will be compromised. In the process of targeting competitive grants, preparing grant applications, managing increased reporting requirements and recruiting volunteers, Bushcare units should apply a mission “filter” to ensure their mission is not compromised in the pursuit of money. Bushcare New South …


Assessing The Prerequisite Of Successful Csr Implementation: Are Consumers Aware Of Csr Initiatives?, Alan Pomering, Sara Dolnicar Apr 2008

Assessing The Prerequisite Of Successful Csr Implementation: Are Consumers Aware Of Csr Initiatives?, Alan Pomering, Sara Dolnicar

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

Corporate social responsibility has received a large amount of research attention over the last decade. Results indicate that consumers are influenced by corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives of businesses if they are aware of them. Whether consumers are in fact aware of CSR initiatives, however, has not been studied in the past. This ‘missing link’ in CSR research makes the conclusions that CSR affects consumer behaviour questionable. Consequently, a number of researchers (e.g. Maignan 2001; Mohr, Webb, and Harris 2001) have called for empirical studies to determine the extent to which consumers are actually aware of the CSR records of …


A Profile Of The Non-Executive Directors Of Australia's Largest Public Companies, C. L. Cortese, G. Bowrey Apr 2008

A Profile Of The Non-Executive Directors Of Australia's Largest Public Companies, C. L. Cortese, G. Bowrey

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This paper presents a profile of the non-executive directors of Australia’s largest public companies. Using descriptive data, it assesses the extent to which these companies adhere to the requirements set down in the Australian Stock Exchange’s Principles of Good Corporate Governance. In particular, board structure and composition is evaluated, and levels of remuneration and independence among non-executive directors are assessed. The paper concludes with a discussion of the need for independence and questions whether competence, among other characteristics, is a more valuable characteristic of a non-executive director than independence.


Corporate Social Responsibility Reporting In Hong Kong: Case Study Of Three Note-Issuing Banks (2003-2006), F. Hui, G. Bowrey Apr 2008

Corporate Social Responsibility Reporting In Hong Kong: Case Study Of Three Note-Issuing Banks (2003-2006), F. Hui, G. Bowrey

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

The increasing public concern on the state of the world’s environment and the impact of mankind on the ecology of the world has lead to the increased scrutiny of the operations and performance of organisations. Organisations are now expected to be able to demonstrate that they are aware and are addressing the impact of their operations, both direct and indirect, on the environment and society in general. Financial institutions due to the nature of their business generally do not contribute directly to the degradation of the environment however they do provide the funds for many organisations’ projects which do directly …


An Empirical Analysis Of Sustainability Of Trade Deficit: Evidence From Sri Lanka, Nelson Perera, R. Verma Apr 2008

An Empirical Analysis Of Sustainability Of Trade Deficit: Evidence From Sri Lanka, Nelson Perera, R. Verma

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

In this paper, the long-run relationship between Sri Lankan exports and imports during the period 1950 to 2006 is examined using unit root tests and cointegration techniques that allow for an endogenously determined structural break. The results failed to support the existence of a long-run equilibrium between exports and imports in Sri Lanka. This finding questions the effectiveness of Sri Lanka’s current long-term macroeconomic policies and suggests that Sri Lanka is in violation of its international budget constraint.


International Trade And Regional Income Convergence: The Asean-5 Evidence, K. Jayanthakumaran, R. Verma Apr 2008

International Trade And Regional Income Convergence: The Asean-5 Evidence, K. Jayanthakumaran, R. Verma

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This paper intends to show that that multilateralism and regionalism are complementary and that regional income convergence is likely with the like-minded and committed regionalism that often has links geographically and culturally. In this direction this paper examines the association between international trade, income per capita, regional income convergence in ASEAN-5 by applying the LP (Lumsdaine and Papell, 1997) approach, which allows two endogenous structural breaks. The paper further explores the causal relationships among the above variables by using Granger causality tests. We used intra-ASEAN-5’s (of the 5 founding counties) historical data by isolating the following different historical policy interventions: …


A Commentary On 'The Order Of Teaching Accounting Topics - Why Do Most Textbooks End With The Beginning?', A. Abraham Mar 2008

A Commentary On 'The Order Of Teaching Accounting Topics - Why Do Most Textbooks End With The Beginning?', A. Abraham

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This paper deals with an issue of relevance to all those involved in teaching accounting from a student-centred perspective – the order in which topics should be introduced to students in an introductory accounting subject. The stated purpose of the paper is “to stimulate debate” (p. 9). In order to do this, the author presents an argument for her proposed ordering for the introduction of topics and then reports the results of her analysis of the sequencing of chapters in twenty three selected textbooks. These two distinct sections of the paper will be discussed first separately and then drawn together …


Survival Strategies And Characteristics Of Start-Ups: An Empirical Study From The New Zealand It Industry, Shamika Almeida, Mario Fernando Mar 2008

Survival Strategies And Characteristics Of Start-Ups: An Empirical Study From The New Zealand It Industry, Shamika Almeida, Mario Fernando

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

The purpose of this paper is to report the findings of an exploratory study on the characteristics of New Zealand start up IT firms that survived the dot.com collapse. The paper is based on the in-depth interviews of nine entrepreneurs of start-up IT firms in New Zealand. The findings reveal how moderate strategy types influence survival, and what core organizational characteristics influenced the realisation of these strategies. These findings indicate that the firms that survived projected characteristics of holistic strategic balance, mastering resources and unifying focus. Successful firms made purposeful choices on resource allocations and realized moderately simple strategies. In …


Price And Demand: What Do 3pl Customers Really Want?, Tim Coltman Feb 2008

Price And Demand: What Do 3pl Customers Really Want?, Tim Coltman

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

Successful companies understand what their customers want and are able to reverse engineer their supply chains to meet this demand in ways that make business sense. Less successful companies often find it hard to obtain a good understanding of what their customer’s value, and spend considerable time hustling to do things that are not fully appreciated by their customers. The lessons here are quite straightforward; rewards accrue to those organizations that are “best” able to match “appropriate” supply chain activities to the latent needs of their customers.


The Struggle To Develop Accounting Practices In The Australian Girl Guides, 1945-9: A Microhistorical Approach, A. Abraham Feb 2008

The Struggle To Develop Accounting Practices In The Australian Girl Guides, 1945-9: A Microhistorical Approach, A. Abraham

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

There has been limited accounting history research in the areas of nonprofit organisations and women in a non-business environment. This paper addresses these two gaps by considering accounting history in a large female-managed nonprofit organisation, the Australian Girl Guides Association (GGA). To do this the paper uses a microhistorical reconstruction of an individual to penetrate underlying motivations (Parker, 1999, p. 31) and to allow the reader “to draw conclusions from a story that illustrates a fragment of peoples’ lives and activities” (Williams, 1999, p. 75) by revealing what would otherwise be unknown about the struggle to develop appropriate accounting practices …


Models Of Trust-Sharing In Chinese Private Enterprises, Zhong Qin, Guibin Zhang Jan 2008

Models Of Trust-Sharing In Chinese Private Enterprises, Zhong Qin, Guibin Zhang

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This paper presents two related models of development patterns of Chinese private enterprises. They illustrate incentive-based reasons for ownership arrangements of private enterprises, and highlight how institutional foundations of trust, particularly government and family-based cultural values, play an important role in influencing the development of private enterprises. These models attempt to explain why government and family-based culture are crucial for the ownership structure and management of private enterprises. The main argument in the models is that the structure of family businesses can be viewed, in essence, as a form of trust-sharing (Guanxi-sharing) arrangement within the firm. Furthermore, the increase in …


Resource Price Shocks And Macroeconomic Adjustment For A Resource Exporter: Some Preliminary Results, Grant M. Cox, Charles Harvie Jan 2008

Resource Price Shocks And Macroeconomic Adjustment For A Resource Exporter: Some Preliminary Results, Grant M. Cox, Charles Harvie

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

The increased demand for energy and other resources in global markets, particularly arising from the rapidly developing economies of China and India, has recently produced considerable turbulence in resource prices including, most obviously, that of oil. Given the recent magnitude of change in resource prices, the macroeconomic implications of this for resource producing and exporting economies and resource importing economies is of now considerable contemporary importance. This paper develops a dynamic macroeconomic model for a resource producing and exporting economy, with the objective of capturing the key macroeconomic developments that are likely to arise from an increase in the price …


Simulation Down Under, Matthew P. Pepper, Trevor A. Spedding Jan 2008

Simulation Down Under, Matthew P. Pepper, Trevor A. Spedding

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This paper provides a brief literature review of the current applications of simulation in Australia. The paper identi-fies areas that use simulation modeling and dynamic tools for growth and improvement, while also highlighting opportunities for future applications of simulation. The simulation applications highlighted in this paper are focused on some of the most significant issues facing Australia today.


Linking Attitudes And Demographics In A Tourist Segmentation Model - A Two-Stage Approach, Uraiporn Kattiyapornpong, Kenneth E. Miller Jan 2008

Linking Attitudes And Demographics In A Tourist Segmentation Model - A Two-Stage Approach, Uraiporn Kattiyapornpong, Kenneth E. Miller

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

Segmentation has been widely studied in tourism research e.g. Dolnicar (2004). Dawley (2006) points that commonly used segmentation variables such as demographics lead to identifiable segments which are not actionable while other useful approaches e.g. psychographics, are actionable but not identifiable. The objective of this paper is to develop a two-stage linkage approach to segmentation whereby cluster analysis using psychographic variables is conducted within demographic group. Demographic groups are selected based on propensity to travel. This research utilizes data generated from a cross-sectional self-completed survey of 49,105 Australian respondents on travel and tourism. The managerial usefulness of this segmentation is …


Fitting Finite Mixtures Of Linear Mixed Models With The Em Algorithm, Bettina Grun Jan 2008

Fitting Finite Mixtures Of Linear Mixed Models With The Em Algorithm, Bettina Grun

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

Finite mixtures of linear mixed models are increasily applied in differentareas of application. They conveniently allow to account for correlations betweenobservations from the same individual and to model unobserved heterogeneity betweenindividuals at the same time. Different variants of the EM algorithm arepossible for maximum likelihood (ML) estimation. In this paper two different versionsfor fitting this model class are presented. One variant of the EM algorithmrequires weighted ML estimation. As this fitting method might not be readily availablein standard software sufficient conditions which allow to transform a weightedinto an unweighted ML estimation problem are derived.


Call Auction Transparency And Market Liquidity, Evidence From The Shanghai Stock Exchange, Gary G. Tian, Dionigi Gerace, Alex Frino Jan 2008

Call Auction Transparency And Market Liquidity, Evidence From The Shanghai Stock Exchange, Gary G. Tian, Dionigi Gerace, Alex Frino

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This paper examines the impact of pre-trade information transparency in pre-open call auction on market liquidity on the Shanghai Stock Exchange (SHSE). We examine the natural experiment affected by the Shanghai Stock Exchange in July 2006 when it changed its pre-open auction algorithm from an entirely black box into a limited transparent system with a closed order book. We find that the increase in pre-trade information transparency coincides with a statistically significant reduction in spread at the best quotes. The reduction in spread persists even after controlling for known determinants of depth. Furthermore, there is also evidence of a statistically …


An Analysis Of The Financial Services Regulations Of Australia, Shyam S. Bhati Jan 2008

An Analysis Of The Financial Services Regulations Of Australia, Shyam S. Bhati

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

The purpose of this paper is to critically analyse various aspects of Australian Financial Services Regulation in terms of Llewellyn’s Theory of Financial Services Regulation and offer suggestions for the improvement of FSR based on the analysis. A discussion based approach is used to conduct this analysis. It is observed that the FSR Act, 2001 of Australia does not cover credit products thereby leaving an important segment of the market outside the purview of the Act. The policies developed by Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) on FSR Act relies on Industry self regulation as mechanism of creating trust and …


Corporate Social Responsibility Website Representations: A Longitudinal Study Of Internal And External Self-Presentations, Debra Z. Basil, Jill Erlandson Jan 2008

Corporate Social Responsibility Website Representations: A Longitudinal Study Of Internal And External Self-Presentations, Debra Z. Basil, Jill Erlandson

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This research undertakes a longitudinal study to assess the representation of CSR activities on Canadian companies' websites. A systematic sample of the websites of 159 companies from Canada's top 1000 was assessed in 2003 and 2006. Results reveal that only 27% expressed some form of CSR activity in 2003, compared to 67% in 2006. Based on a frame from Weaver, Trevino, and Cochran (1999a), CSR activities are categorized as external or internal. A strong increase in internal CSR activities is evident. Companies that are more successful indicate more CSR activity on their websites; this effect is driven primarily by internal …