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Articles 5191 - 5220 of 6934

Full-Text Articles in Business

Nation Branding: Presenting The Image That Matches National Identity, Knowledge@Smu Jul 2010

Nation Branding: Presenting The Image That Matches National Identity, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Brand launches are, more often than not, quiet affairs. Attention-hungry marketers might sometimes resort to controversies, so as to leverage on hype. Even then, it may take a fair amount of provocation and amusement just to get the slightest response from the modern-day multi-tasking, attention-deficit consumer. Contrast this with the launch of Singapore's latest tourism brand, YourSingapore, earlier this year – an event that elicited some fervent objections from the public. The people behind those heated responses were not necessarily experts on tourism or marketing. It was a matter that compelled everyday citizens to weigh in with their thoughts. Why, …

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Changing Business Practices In A World Of Emerging Economic Giants, Knowledge@Smu Jul 2010

Changing Business Practices In A World Of Emerging Economic Giants, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

It can sometimes seem as if there is an overemphasis on Asia's two economic powerhouses. But while few people would dispute these manufacturing capitals' knack for delivering good value for money, very little attention has been given to the countries' capacity to innovate and market. Today, blueprints and concepts are often seen as domain of those 'advanced economies', whilst 'emerging economies' are habitually discounted as engines of production. Such notions are quickly being displaced as businesses and consumers of China and India exert their influence on the rest of the world.

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Right Up Our Valley: Why Singapore Ought To Quit Copying Silicon Valley, Knowledge@Smu Jul 2010

Right Up Our Valley: Why Singapore Ought To Quit Copying Silicon Valley, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

For a small piece of land with no natural resources to offer, Singapore's economy relies a lot on its strategic geographical location, human talents, as well as a penchant for wanting to be the global, and if not, regional 'hub' for commerce, arts and sciences. Where technology is concerned, the one to beat is Silicon Valley. A tall order, perhaps, but the draw is unmistakably alluring. On its own, the Valley boasts a GDP of US$100 billion, generating more wealth per person than anywhere else in the USA. Not content with just salivating over that piece of the pie, Singapore …

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Before The Fields Run Dry: How To Avoid The 'Dutch Disease', Knowledge@Smu Jul 2010

Before The Fields Run Dry: How To Avoid The 'Dutch Disease', Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

For any economy, the discovery of abundant natural resources is almost akin to striking nature's lottery. But as any eager financial planner might say to a lottery winner, no windfall can last for long without a solid financial plan. Singapore, a country admired for its relatively substantial national reserves, is home to almost no natural resources (except for human capital, we're told). This lack of natural resources, however, may well be the reason behind the country's economic success. According to Svein Gjedrem, governor of Norges Bank, natural resource-rich countries often suffer from a 'disease' that causes them to rely too …

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Uob's Sustainable Approach To Talent Management For The Private Banking Industry, Knowledge@Smu Jul 2010

Uob's Sustainable Approach To Talent Management For The Private Banking Industry, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

After a hiatus during the financial crisis, the poaching of private banking relationship managers is back. For the players, incumbent and new, local and international, poaching is probably the quickest and most straightforward means of a headcount-led expansion. No need to nurture and develop new recruits when they come nicely packaged with all the right credentials to hit the ground running. But what happens as more and more companies adopt this attitude to recruitment? Wilson Aw, head of private banking at United Overseas Bank, says the industry knows that it cannot grow from within such a vicious cycle. He shares …

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Stock Return Synchronicity And Technical Trading Rules, Koon Boon Kee, Qihui Chen Jul 2010

Stock Return Synchronicity And Technical Trading Rules, Koon Boon Kee, Qihui Chen

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

No abstract provided.

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Effect Of Credit Ratings On Airport Financing And Management, Kazusei Kato, Koichiro Tezuka, Joyce M. W. Low Jul 2010

Effect Of Credit Ratings On Airport Financing And Management, Kazusei Kato, Koichiro Tezuka, Joyce M. W. Low

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

This paper analyzes the effect of airport ownership structure on management efficiency as reflected through their credit ratings. A game-theoretical model is proposed to examine the role of credit ratings in mitigating the moral hazard problem of public-owned airports. The analytical results derived from the model are then used to supplement a supporting case study. Notwithstanding the fact that the less competitive environment of a public-owned entity and its credit ratings might bring some welfare loss , this research concludes that public-owned airports have some advantages.

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Comments On Ed Financial Instruments: Fair Value Option For Financial Liabilities, Tan, Pearl Hock-Neo Jul 2010

Comments On Ed Financial Instruments: Fair Value Option For Financial Liabilities, Tan, Pearl Hock-Neo

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

No abstract provided.

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Hybrid Time-Frequency Domain Analysis For Inverter-Fed Induction Motor Fault Detection, T. W. Chua, W. W. Tan, Zhaoxia Wang, C. S. Chang Jul 2010

Hybrid Time-Frequency Domain Analysis For Inverter-Fed Induction Motor Fault Detection, T. W. Chua, W. W. Tan, Zhaoxia Wang, C. S. Chang

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

The detection of faults in an induction motor is important as a part of preventive maintenance. Stator current is one of the most popular signals used for utility-supplied induction motor fault detection as a current sensor can be installed nonintrusively. In variable speeds operation, the use of an inverter to drive the induction motor introduces noise into the stator current so stator current based fault detection techniques become less reliable. This paper presents a hybrid algorithm, which combines time and frequency domain analysis, for broken rotor bar and bearing fault detection. Cluster information obtained by using Independent Component Analysis (ICA) …

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Reforming China's State-Owned Farms: State Farms In Agrarian Transition, Qian Forrest Zhang Jul 2010

Reforming China's State-Owned Farms: State Farms In Agrarian Transition, Qian Forrest Zhang

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

China’s 2000 strong state-owned farms are experiencing a dual transition in the country’s economic reforms: the market transition (from state-owned enterprises embedded in the redistributive system to independent enterprises in the new market economy) and agrarian transition (from small-scale, household-based agriculture to large-scale, capitalist forms of agriculture that rely on market exchanges of land, labor and products). This paper highlights the results of a comparative analysis of the state farms and rural farming households in the agrarian transition to address the theoretical debate about agrarian transition. Using field research data from state farms in HeilongJIANG Province and drawing extensively from …

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Off The Cliff And Back? Credit Conditions And International Trade During The Global Financial Crisis, Davin Chor, Kalina Manova Jul 2010

Off The Cliff And Back? Credit Conditions And International Trade During The Global Financial Crisis, Davin Chor, Kalina Manova

Research Collection School Of Economics

We study the collapse of international trade flows during the global financial crisis using detailed data on monthly US imports. We show that credit conditions were an important channel through which the crisis affected trade volumes, by exploiting the variation in the cost of capital across countries and over time, as well as the variation in financial vulnerability across sectors. Countries with higher interbank rates and thus tighter credit markets exported less to the US during the peak of the crisis. This effect was especially pronounced in sectors that require extensive external financing, have limited access to trade credit, or …

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The Upstart's Assault, Marco Bertini, Nirmalya Kumar Jul 2010

The Upstart's Assault, Marco Bertini, Nirmalya Kumar

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

The article presents a fictional case study that focuses on how to manage competition in the telecommunication services industry. The issue is that one company could lose customers and market share because another company is offering free broadband. Georg Tacke, co-chief executive officer of Simon-Kucher & Partners company, and Anne Gro Gulla, a branding director at Telenor Group company, offer their views on how to respond to a competitive attack without causing a price war.

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Research Methods And Issues, Laura R. Weingart, Kenneth T. Goh Jul 2010

Research Methods And Issues, Laura R. Weingart, Kenneth T. Goh

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Group processes can be conceptualized as the mechanisms or intervening factors that connect properties of groups (e.g., group size, average skill level, diversity, or identity) to outcomes. Examples include the actions or communication that groups engage in while making decisions, negotiating, or coordinating their activities. These behaviors are driven by the group's task and associated performance goals, creating interdependencies among group members that lead to coordinated and actively integrated behavior. It is this set of behaviors that researchers investigating group processes attempt to capture and analyze.

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Industry Recommendations: Characteristics, Investment Value, And Relation To Firm Recommendations, Ohad Kadan, Madureira Leonardo, Rong Wang, Tzachi Zach Jul 2010

Industry Recommendations: Characteristics, Investment Value, And Relation To Firm Recommendations, Ohad Kadan, Madureira Leonardo, Rong Wang, Tzachi Zach

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

We study analysts’ industry recommendations. We find that the distribution of industry recommendations is quite balanced. Analysts show more optimism towards industries with high levels of R&D, past profitability and past returns. Industry recommendations possess investment value as portfolios based on these recommendations generate risk-adjusted abnormal returns. Finally, industry recommendations contain information which is orthogonal to that included in firm recommendations, and more so for brokers who benchmark their firm recommendations to industry peers. Consequently, the investment value of analysts’ recommendations is enhanced when both industry and firm recommendations are used.

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Reference Point Adaptation And Disposition Effect: Evidence From Institutional Trading, Chiraphol N. Chiyachantana, Zongfei Yang Jul 2010

Reference Point Adaptation And Disposition Effect: Evidence From Institutional Trading, Chiraphol N. Chiyachantana, Zongfei Yang

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Using a large proprietary database of institutional trades, we investigate whether, and to what extent, the dynamic adaptation of reference point translates into variations in the disposition effect, and establish three key results. First, the propensity to realize losses declines sharply with the magnitude of prior losses due to insufficient adaptation of reference point. Second, recent adverse information accelerates investors’ adaptation to price depreciation and increases investors’ willingness to realize losses. Finally, a priori of losing money in highly speculative investments decreases investors’ aversion to realize losses. Collectively, the findings suggest that both prior outcomes and recent expectations contribute to …

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Corporate Valuation Around The World: The Effects Of Governance, Growth, And Openness, Choong Tze Chua, Cheol S. Eun, Sandy Lai Jul 2010

Corporate Valuation Around The World: The Effects Of Governance, Growth, And Openness, Choong Tze Chua, Cheol S. Eun, Sandy Lai

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

The purpose of this paper is to provide a comprehensive analysis of corporate valuation around the world. Specifically, we (i) document and compare corporate valuation around the world, and (ii) identify the key factors that drive cross-country differences in valuation. In doing so, we utilize the country-level Tobin's q (CTQ), computed as the ratio of the aggregate market value to book value of all assets held by all public firms domiciled in a country, which amounts to the Tobin's q for the [`]market portfolio' of the country. The key findings of the paper are: First, CTQ varies greatly across countries, …

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Mir Talks To Vinita Bali, Managing Director And Ceo Of Britannia Industries, Srinivas K. Reddy Jul 2010

Mir Talks To Vinita Bali, Managing Director And Ceo Of Britannia Industries, Srinivas K. Reddy

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Today we live in a truly global economy, no matter whether we talk about goods, services or manpower. Whereas economic growth rates in Europe and North America remain moderate, many Asian countries are booming despite last year´s economic downturn. This is reason enough for MIR to take a closer look at one of the rising stars: India. In June 2010, MIR talked to Vinita Bali, one of the few female CEOs of leading companies, who has worked in influential marketing positions on five continents. In describing how Britannia, one of the most famous Indian brands, handles everyday business and marketing …

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Investor Diversification And The Pricing Of Idiosyncratic Risk, Fangjian Fu Jul 2010

Investor Diversification And The Pricing Of Idiosyncratic Risk, Fangjian Fu

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Theories predict that, due to investor under-diversification, idiosyncratic risk is positively priced in expected stock returns. Empirical studies based on various methodologies yield mixed evidence. This study circumvents the debate on methodological issues and traces the pricing of idiosyncratic risk to its economic source – investor under-diversification. Assuming that institutional investors tend to hold more diversified portfolios and thus care little about idiosyncratic risk relative to individual investors, we find that the positive relation between idiosyncratic risk and stock returns is significantly stronger (weaker) in stocks that are held and traded more by individual (institutional) investors. In addition, the pricing …

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Exploiting Metaheuristics To Strategize On Performance-Based Logistics Contracts For Mro Services, Arnd Schirrmann, Elaine Wong, Zhichao Zheng Jul 2010

Exploiting Metaheuristics To Strategize On Performance-Based Logistics Contracts For Mro Services, Arnd Schirrmann, Elaine Wong, Zhichao Zheng

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

An inherent challenge of using Performance-Based Logistics (PBL) contracts for aircraftmaintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services is pricing. As with traditional bricks andmortar services, under-priced contracts cannot cover costs, while overpriced contracts loseout to competition. Furthermore MRO services have an additional element of uncertainty.Performance uncertainties arise due to the inability to accurately forecast demand of spareparts, while cost uncertainties are a result of globally distributed operations subjected tofluctuating economic conditions. Previous work to solve this contracting problem adoptedthe principal-agent model, obtaining an optimal solution from the perspective of both riskaverseparties (i.e., a price-sensitive customer and a profit-driven service provider). Thiswork …

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How Predictable Is The Chinese Stock Market?, Fuwei Jiang, David E. Rapach, Jack K. Strauss, Jun Tu Jul 2010

How Predictable Is The Chinese Stock Market?, Fuwei Jiang, David E. Rapach, Jack K. Strauss, Jun Tu

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

We analyze return predictability for the Chinese stock market, including the aggregate market portfolio and the components of the aggregate market, such as portfolios sorted on industry, size, book-to-market and ownership concentration. Considering a variety of economic variables as predictors, both in-sample and out-of-sample tests highlight significant predictability in the aggregate market portfolio of the Chinese stock market and substantial differences in return predictability across components. Among industry portfolios, Finance and insurance, Real estate, and Service exhibit the most predictability, while portfolios of small-cap and low ownership concentration firms also display considerable predictability. Two key findings provide economic explanations for …

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Impact Of Flow And Brand Equity In 3d Virtual Worlds, Fiona Fui-Hoon Nah, Brenda Eschenbrenner, David Dewester, So Ra Park Jul 2010

Impact Of Flow And Brand Equity In 3d Virtual Worlds, Fiona Fui-Hoon Nah, Brenda Eschenbrenner, David Dewester, So Ra Park

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

This research is a partial test of Park et al.’s (2008) model to assess the impact of flow and brand equity in 3D virtual worlds. It draws on flow theory as its main theoretical foundation to understand and empirically assess the impact of flow on brand equity and behavioral intention in 3D virtual worlds. The findings suggest that the balance of skills and challenges in 3D virtual worlds influences users’ flow experience, which in turn influences brand equity. Brand equity then increases behavioral intention. The authors also found that the impact of flow on behavioral intention in 3D virtual worlds …

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Weathering The Storm: Asian Hedge Funds, Melvyn Teo Jun 2010

Weathering The Storm: Asian Hedge Funds, Melvyn Teo

Research Collection BNP Paribas Hedge Fund Centre

How has the financial crisis shaped the hedge fund industry in Asia? We survey the style, investment region, and assets under management landscape of Asia-based hedge funds before and after the recent economic downturn. Our findings suggest that during the early part of the crisis in 2007, macro and fixed income funds based in Australia were especially vulnerable. When Asian financial markets succumbed in 2008 and 2009, hedge fund exits ramped up in Singapore and Hong Kong, particularly amongst event driven and Japan-focused funds. Small funds were most susceptible to closure during the liquidity crunch. Conversely, CTAs and Greater China-focused …

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Poverty Alleviation Begins With A Job, An Ambition, And A Little Bit Of Money, Knowledge@Smu Jun 2010

Poverty Alleviation Begins With A Job, An Ambition, And A Little Bit Of Money, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

The same dollar, used by a woman, can have 20 times more impact on a child’s survival than the same dollar used by her male counterpart. Unfortunately, 70 percent of those stuck in the lower economic rungs in Asia, are women. With socio-cultural factors perpetuating gender-based disadvantages in this part of the world, much more has to be done to empower those caught at the bottom of society's 'pyramid'. That is why Chandra Shekhar Ghosh, founder of microfinance institution, Bandhan, has chosen to target his services towards women. According to him, empowering this group by just a little can go …

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Secrets And Lies: How One Man Charmed His Way Into The Hearts, Minds And Wallets Of New York's Rich And Powerful, Knowledge@Smu Jun 2010

Secrets And Lies: How One Man Charmed His Way Into The Hearts, Minds And Wallets Of New York's Rich And Powerful, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Bernie Madoff’s reputation as the largest ponzi scheme operator will probably outlast the 150-year jail sentence he is now serving. For decades, the man created an aura around himself that spoke to the romantic ambitions of Wall Street's sycophants: unyielding success, exclusivity and power. Moreover, Madoff conjured a mystique so intriguing he had investors practically begging to surrender their money. But not everyone was blinded. Harry Markopolos, a financial consultant turned famous whistleblower, was convinced that the magician hath no magical abilities. For close to ten years, he nudged US regulators to no avail. His journey is detailed in the …

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Building Beyond Singapore: Local Real Estate Businesses Venture Overseas, Knowledge@Smu Jun 2010

Building Beyond Singapore: Local Real Estate Businesses Venture Overseas, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Despite the recent property and construction boom in Singapore, local players in this field have always kept an eye on overseas markets. Lured by the promise of profits and prestige, many are setting up in cities around the world. However, unlike consumer mom-and-pop shops, the size of the investment typical of property and construction companies demands an ultra careful study of the overseas market. Companies have also got to ask if they have the required skills, talents and resources to churn a good project, said industry experts at a recent SMU forum.

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East Side Story: Lessons From Japan's Business Leaders, Knowledge@Smu Jun 2010

East Side Story: Lessons From Japan's Business Leaders, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Japan's phenomenal post-war transformation into a high-tech nation of vending machines, electric toilets and 24-hour convenience stores, has been the envy of most developed nations. Where, in the past, the country would look towards America, with the import of Western goods, services and business philosophy, Japan has recently taken a turn towards that of self-discovery. In the book, Rediscovering Japanese Business Leadership, author Yozo Hasegawa examines how some of Japan's leading brands, like Nintendo, Uniqlo and Canon, have weathered, quite stealthily, the recent global financial meltdown, and he makes a case for why more Japanese companies are returning to home-grown …

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Side-By-Side Management Of Hedge Funds And Mutual Funds, Tom Nohel, Z. Jay Wang, Lu Zheng Jun 2010

Side-By-Side Management Of Hedge Funds And Mutual Funds, Tom Nohel, Z. Jay Wang, Lu Zheng

Research Collection BNP Paribas Hedge Fund Centre

We examine situations where the same fund manager simultaneously manages mutual funds and hedge funds. We refer to this as side-by-side management. We document 344 such cases involving 693 mutual funds and 538 hedge funds. Proponents of this practice argue that it is essential to hire and retain star performers. Detractors argue that the temptation for abuse is high and the practice should be banned. Our analysis based on various performance metrics shows that side-by-side mutual fund managers significantly outperform peer funds, consistent with this privilege being granted primarily to star performers. Interestingly, side-by-side hedge fund managers are at best …

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Learn Versus Earn: A Case For The Small Business Employers And Those Fresh Graduates Who Join Them, Knowledge@Smu Jun 2010

Learn Versus Earn: A Case For The Small Business Employers And Those Fresh Graduates Who Join Them, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Go to university. Collect scroll. Join a multinational corporation. Prosper. Advance to Go. Collect $200. Newly minted graduates, venturing beyond the comforts of the ivory towers for the very first time, can often hold strong views on what 'the outside world' has to offer, and how that might subsequently colour their future. Join a big international conglomerate and earn bragging rights. Join a 'boutique' outfit (read: sweatshop) and, well, blame the economy. Such sentiments present employers of small-and-medium enterprises (SMEs) with the short end of the stick. One successful SME employee-turned-employer would argue, however, that it is the fresh graduate …

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Do Attractive Organisations Fare Better On The Job Market?, Knowledge@Smu Jun 2010

Do Attractive Organisations Fare Better On The Job Market?, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Some employers can come across as more alluring than others. Few job seekers, for instance, would ignore openings at Apple, Google, Nike or Goldman Sachs. And if they do, it may have more to do with their own self-esteem than a lack of wanting to work at some of these 'World's Most Admired Companies' (according to Fortune magazine's yearly list). However, why do some organisations seem more attractive than others, and does it factor into our own career decisions? Also, while it may seem as if attractive organisations will get their pick of the most desirable 'suitors', a new study …

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The Association Between Accounting Students' Lone Wolf Tendencies And Their Perceptions, Preferences And Performance Outcomes In Team Projects, Premila Gowri-Shankar, Jean Lin Seow Jun 2010

The Association Between Accounting Students' Lone Wolf Tendencies And Their Perceptions, Preferences And Performance Outcomes In Team Projects, Premila Gowri-Shankar, Jean Lin Seow

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

In this study we examine the association between accounting students’ lone wolf tendencies and their perceptions of the usefulness of team work, team interaction behaviors, and team performance. While prior studies find that students generally perceive positive benefits from engaging in team work, our study finds that students with greater lone wolf tendencies perceive fewer benefits from engaging in team work. We also find that during team interactions, teams with a greater proportion of students with higher lone wolf tendencies experience less team commitment and team leadership. Further, such teams rate the outcome of their project negatively, although, there is …

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