Business Commons^™

Users And Accounting Information Preferences Of Government Department Financial Reports, Helen R. Mignot

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The introduction of an accounting standard requiring government departments to replace fund-type, cash-based accounting statements with business-type, accrual based accounting statements has led to criticism that business-type, general purpose financial statements do not take account of the information requirements of major users. Such criticism echoes a long standing debate in which the users of public sector financial statements and their informational requirements are analysed in competing models. One view suggests that there are many users with homogeneous informational needs, who can be classified into a few broad groups. The other view maintains that there are few users who have differential …

An Evaluation Of The Social And Economic Impacts Of The Ppaep On Rural Philippines : The Case Of Luyong Bonbon And Pagalungan, Misamis Oriental, Philippines, Maria R. Hechanova

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the social, economic and other impacts of the Pilot Provincial Agricultural Extension Project (PP AEP), an Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) project in the villages of Luyong Bonbon and Pagalungan, Misamis Oriental, Philippines. This study has examined the literature related to technology transfer in agriculture, the notion of appropriate technology and Australia's current development program in the Philippines. This study utilises a multiple case study of qualitative methodology. The Group Ecology Model (GEM) is utilised as a conceptual framework of this study and the process/ outcome matrix is utilised to analyse …

Social Disclosure By Australian Listed Mineral Mining Companies: A Stakeholder Approach, Gary S. Kong

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This study examines the incentives of Australian listed mineral mining companies within the stakeholder theoretical framework to disclose socially responsible information in their corporate annual report. The three dimensions of the stakeholder theory were empirically tested to explain the association of a social disclosure model comprising categories of social disclosure for environment, energy, product and services, human resources and community involvement, with nine firm-specific characteristics. The sample of 179 Australian listed mineral mining companies for the financial year ending 1994 was obtained by personal contact. The extent of social disclosure was measured by a dichotomous index against the social disclosure …

The Australian Family Farm: Is It Soon To Be An Illusive Myth?, Fiona M.H. Mckenzie

Research outputs pre 2011

This paper examines the challenges faced by Western Australian rural enterprises since 1961 and the effects of economic and demographic change on the agricultural industry over the last thirty years.

Increasing capitalisation and technological advances have led to major shifts in the way the business of farming is conducted. There is evidence to suggest that these changes have contributed to an oversupply of agricultural products, the development of large-scale agri-business firms and a general depopulation of the agricultural sector.

The family farm has always been considered the backbone of Australian agriculture but there is evidence to suggest that in this …

Women And Leadership Working Paper Series: Paper No. 4: Women As Leaders, Leonie V. Still

Research outputs pre 2011

Leadership is a term that is not normally associated with women. This is despite the fact that throughout history women have often played a prominent role. Those that have gained prominence have done so in four main ways (Apfelbaum and Hadley, 1986):

• through charismatic leadership: the unique example being Joan of Arc.

• through inherited leadership positions: examples include the women who become heads of family businesses or queens by succeeding to monarchs.

• through the achievement of professional eminence: women who become leading figures in their disciplines because of their professional and / or scientific achievements - examples …

Women And Leadership Working Paper Series: Paper No. 7: Gender Issues In Management Education: Redressing The Imbalance, Catherine R. Smith, Barbara Vitoria

Research outputs pre 2011

In 1992 the Federal government appointed an Industry Task Force on Leadership and Management Skills !hereinafter referred to as the Task Force) to review Australia's management and leadership capabilities, and advise on measures to strengthen management practices, in an effort to improve economic performance. An international leadership expert advising the Task Force alleged that 'corporate Australia's Achilles' heel' is its all-male monoculture, whose 'rugby-serum mentality' makes boardroom entry difficult for women, and non-traditional men who do not fit the stereotypically masculine image IMant, 1994:3). Mant emphasised that, because new ideas result from diversity, Australian management culture needs to embrace a …

Women And Leadership Working Paper Series: Paper No. 8: Career Transitions Of Dual-Career Couples: An Empirical Study, Catherine R. Smith

Research outputs pre 2011

No abstract provided.

Brave New World? Women And Part-Time Employment: The Impact On Career Prospects And Employment Relations, Leonie V. Still

Research outputs pre 2011

Part-time employment is a growing segment of the labour force, a trend that has been discernible in all OECD countries over the past thirty years (Thurman and Trah, 1990). According to Burgess, Gleisner and Rasmussen (1996,p95), part-time employment growth has been widespread across all sectors, occupations and demographic groups. Both Australia and New Zealand have recorded such a growth in the numbers of part-time workers and a growing part-time employment share, that nearly one quarter of the workforce in both countries is employed on a part-time basis. Among OECD countries Australia is one of the larger employers of part-time labour, …

Women And Leadership Working Paper Series: Paper No. 6: Women In International Assignments: The Australian Experience, Catherine R. Smith, Leonie V. Still

Research outputs pre 2011

Businesses are increasingly operating within an international environment, where the human and financial costs of failure are more serious than the domestic arena, and expatriate failure is reported to be a persistent and recurring problem for multinational corporations (Scullion, 1994). The successful implementation of global strategies depends heavily upon the existence of an adequate pool of nationally and internationally experienced managers with a diversity of talent. Adler ( 1993a, p55) has argued that "the option of limiting international management to one gender is an arm-chair 'luxury' that no company can afford". Given the need to develop global teams with a …

Women And Leadership Working Paper Series: Paper No. 9: The Dual-Career Phenomenon: Employer Awareness And Responses, Catherine R. Smith

Research outputs pre 2011

Over the past thirty years, Western industrialised nations have witnessed major changes in their labour force characteristics. Of particular significance has been the steady increase of women in the paid workforce. Equal employment opportunity legislation, higher educational achievements and increasing numbers of female role models have fuelled women's career possibilities and aspirations. Consequently, growing numbers of women are pursuing longer-term careers, often through the ranks of management. A career implies a longer term developmental occupation or profession, with a sequence of connections and networks over time, although this does not preclude lateral or downward moves or temporary withdrawals, in response …

High Growth Maritime Industries: Recent Successes And Major Opportunities For Western Australia, Edith Cowan University

Research outputs pre 2011

There are indications that the maritime industry in Western Australia is currently insufficiently serviced by the tertiary sector in terms of its educational needs. Thus, in May 1995 a Maritime Industry Taskforce was formed to investigate opportunities for further development of maritime industries in Western Australia and around the Indian Ocean Rim. Following months of discussion with government agencies, industry and tertiary education providers, it was considered opportune to conduct a seminar to bring these areas together to openly explore key issues in building upon successes already achieved. The seminar included speakers from each of the areas of government, industry …

Approaches To Decision Making, Richard J. Mckenna

Research outputs pre 2011

This book is designed as a brief introduction to the understanding of decision making in work settings. It is designed for use in graduate courses and should be supported by a wide range of additional reading materials and practical exercises. The approach is multi-disciplinary and pluralistic: there are many perspectives from which decision making may be viewed. Similarly, there are many differences in decision making between individuals and between contexts.

The book is intended to contribute to a raised awareness of the many issues and high complexity attaching to important decisions. It may or may not help the reader to …

Towards A Model For Software Project Estimating, Stuart Hope

Theses : Honours

The use and development of software is an integral and critical part of modern industrial society. The outcomes of many software development and maintenance projects have been less than satisfactory with significant numbers being over schedule, lacking in functionality and over budget. These problems are the result of poor management of both the process and the product. One of the major problems to overcome in the management of software development projects is the ability to predict the outcomes early in the project when there are a large number of unknowns. The ability to reliably predict the outcomes in a repeatable …

Perceptions Of Financial Counselling In Western Australia, Natalie Dall

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The development of financial counselling in Australia during the past decade has been complex and fragmented. Financial counselling and rural counselling services within Western Australia are funded from a range of government, non-government and church based groups. This has contributed to problems in the identification of basic definitions of the need for services, the role of the financial counsellor and service models or functions. The failure to define the role of the financial counsellor and the needs to be addressed by financial counselling services, "appears to be the most important historic weakness in the field." (Wyse et al., 1990, p.2). …

Earnings Management And Accounting Choices In Initial Public Offerings : Evidence From Indonesia, Tatang A. Gumanti

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Information asymmetry about the value of the firm making initial public Offering and the potential investors exists. This thesis investigates whether issuers of initial public affairs (IPOs) use accounting discretion to increase the reported earnings through the choice of accounting methods. Anecdotal evidence •suggests that accounting numbers are used in the pricing of IPO. Further, there is an economic incentive for issuers of IPOs to sell the offering shares at the highest possible price which in tum increases their proceeds and thus their wealth. This suggests a prediction that, immediately prior to the offering, issuers exercise accounting discretion to increase …

Outsourcing In Western Australian Hospitals: Management Considerations, Geraldine M. Martin

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This thesis examines Health Care Managers' considerations with and experiences of outsourcing services in Western Australian hospitals. Support services such as cleaning and maintenance are some of the areas which have been targeted for outsourcing (contracting out) by the state government. These services have traditionally been delivered by permanently employed staff either on a full or part- time basis, usually with active union involvement. Core services such as nursing and medical care which involve direct patient care delivery are not included in the outsourcing debate. Firstly, this thesis reviews the literature on outsourcing and its application to the health care …