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Selected Works

2008

Articles 31 - 60 of 119

Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

The Corporate Connection: Financial Reporting In A Large Religious/Charitable Organization In Australia, H. J. Irvine May 2008

The Corporate Connection: Financial Reporting In A Large Religious/Charitable Organization In Australia, H. J. Irvine

Helen Irvine

Nonprofit organizations operate in an increasingly corporatised, competitive environment. More and more, as institutions with charitable agenda, they need to promote an image that will enhance their ability to attract the funding they require in order to continue their operations. Competition for donations is becoming more intense and society is increasing its expectations about the level of accountability desirable from such organizations. One means by which nonprofit organizations can address this issue of accountability, and present themselves to the public as financially sound and worthy of receiving donations, is through their annual financial statements. As accounting practices have changed over …

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Powerful Friends: The Institutionalisation Of Corporate Accounting Practices In An Australian Religious/Charitable Organisation, H. J. Irvine May 2008

Powerful Friends: The Institutionalisation Of Corporate Accounting Practices In An Australian Religious/Charitable Organisation, H. J. Irvine

Helen Irvine

The profile of accounting in the nonprofit sector has been raised substantially in recent years, due to profound changes in the institutional environment in which organizations in that sector operate. One of the factors that has resulted in the adoption of corporate-style financial management techniques, including accounting, in the nonprofit sector, has been the need for such organizations to achieve financial legitimacy. This can be achieved by means of their accounting practices, as they demonstrate a level of financial accountability that proves them to be legitimate recipients of funds from the public, from governments, and increasingly from the corporate sector. …

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Design As Research: Emergent Complex Activity, Helen M. Hasan May 2008

Design As Research: Emergent Complex Activity, Helen M. Hasan

Helen Hasan

There is current interest in design science as a research method in the field of Information Systems. This paper explores this proposition by incorporating established theories into the design research process. These include a view of information systems as essentially socio-technical, notions of tool mediation and expansive learning from Activity Theory and the concept of emergence from Complexity Theory where good design outcomes come from non-deterministic and organic processes. A case of innovative collaborative systems development illustrates how this view of design science may be of value.

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The Challenges Of Introducing Off-The-Shelf Systems Into Complex Work Organisations, Helen M. Hasan, Wannapa Suratmethakul May 2008

The Challenges Of Introducing Off-The-Shelf Systems Into Complex Work Organisations, Helen M. Hasan, Wannapa Suratmethakul

Helen Hasan

This paper describes research into problems commonly experienced when implementing an off-the-shelf information system into the complex work-practices of an organisation. Encountering such an occurrence, the authors employed a grounded theory approach to study the case though the collection, analysis and interpretation of a variety of data. The case concerned the troubled introduction, into a large educational institution, of a complex class timetabling system that was already well established in another similar organisations. Unanticipated problems encountered by various stakeholders in the system during and following the implementation of the system are documented and classified into three categories: knowledge issues, system …

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Sna As An Attractor In Emergent Networks Of Research Groups, Helen M. Hasan, Hamid Pousti May 2008

Sna As An Attractor In Emergent Networks Of Research Groups, Helen M. Hasan, Hamid Pousti

Helen Hasan

While many progressive enterprises are becoming more network-centric, many research-oriented organisations retain a traditional hierarchy with an ego-centric culture. Paradoxically, network-centrism is associated with technology, innovation and creativity, the hallmarks of cutting-edge research. Using concepts of emergence from complexity theory, this study takes a developmental, action research approach to the application of social network analysis in legitimising a network of research groups in a traditionally managed institution. The results indicate that an emergent network is as valid an organisational structure as an imposed hierarchy for research management. The study also demonstrates the use of social network analysis and similar technological …

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An Activity-Based Model Of Collective Knowledge, Helen M. Hasan May 2008

An Activity-Based Model Of Collective Knowledge, Helen M. Hasan

Helen Hasan

In the challenges faced by organisations in the area of knowledge management, there is clearly a role for information and communications technologies in supporting the exploitation of business knowledge. This paper proposes a model of knowledge processes, based on the concept of "activity", i.e. what people do, as determined by the cultural-historical activity theory. The evolutionary development of an implementation of the model in currently available technology is described, together with the results of an evaluation of its suitability and effectiveness. This work is substantiating both the practicability of the implementation and the usefulness of the structure for the extraction …

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Lessons From Go*Team Simulations On Shared Situation Awareness, Helen M. Hasan, L. Warne, H. Mitchard May 2008

Lessons From Go*Team Simulations On Shared Situation Awareness, Helen M. Hasan, L. Warne, H. Mitchard

Helen Hasan

The ancient game of Go is traditionally played by two opposing players (black and white) who take turns laying stones on a board of up to 19x19 squares. The stones can be laid so they eventually encircle stones of the opposing colour, thereby capturing territory and stones. Go has been the inspiration for Go*Team which has been developed as a web-based application for two or more teams; each team with a number of players. Go*Team emulates some of the issues that a Network Centric (NC) environment might bring and consequently allows investigation of issues such as situation awareness. It is …

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The Co-Evolution Of An Accessible But Secure Virtual Space For Collaborative Activities, Kate Crawford, Helen M. Hasan May 2008

The Co-Evolution Of An Accessible But Secure Virtual Space For Collaborative Activities, Kate Crawford, Helen M. Hasan

Helen Hasan

This paper describes, analyses and interprets a research and development process taking place over several years concerning the evolution of a socio-technical system. By ‘socio-technical system’ we mean a dynamic system that is socio-culturally situated and involves both human activity and technical elements. The system design, that is the focus of this research, brings together the human and technical dynamics of the intricate and highly engaging processes of effective collaboration. In particular, an investigation of the various integrated elements of the socio-technical system has provide us with the insight and confidence to build a virtual environment that actually supports innovative …

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Social And Commercial Sustainability Of Regional Web-Based Communities, A. Connery, Helen M. Hasan May 2008

Social And Commercial Sustainability Of Regional Web-Based Communities, A. Connery, Helen M. Hasan

Helen Hasan

New information and communications technologies have disrupted many traditional forms of community but enabled the emergence of new ones. This paper examines pertinent characteristics of communities, before describing three case studies of commercially operated web-based communities. The research demonstrates the social and commercial value of the concept of community.

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Using Olap And Multidimensional Data For Decision Making, Helen M. Hasan, P. Hyland May 2008

Using Olap And Multidimensional Data For Decision Making, Helen M. Hasan, P. Hyland

Helen Hasan

Managers see information as a critical resource and require systems that let them exploit it for competitive advantage. One way to better use organizational information is via online analytical processing and multidimensional databases (MDDBs). OLAP and MDDBs present summarized information from company databases. They use multidimensional structures that let managers slice and dice views of company performance data and drill down into trouble spots. For over a decade, proponents have touted these tools as the ultimate executive information system, but most of the hype comes from product vendors themselves. Based on our experience with several OLAP tools, we have developed …

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Innovative Socio-Technical Systems For Complex Decision-Making, Helen M. Hasan, Kate Crawford May 2008

Innovative Socio-Technical Systems For Complex Decision-Making, Helen M. Hasan, Kate Crawford

Helen Hasan

This paper views the complex activities and decision-making of self-directed groups as socio-technical systems. Seven innovative ICT-based tools are presented that underpin such activities. Three projects are then described where suitable selections of these tools are used creatively in harmony with human and social processes. The Activity Theory hierarchy is used to explain how, in these three projects, the capacity of technology is exploited, where appropriate, to automate operations, while the choice and execution of actions remain with the people engaged in the activities. This provides a picture of decision support systems as socio-technical in nature, involving the exploitation of …

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An Example Of The Use Of Financial Ratio Analysis: The Case Of Motorola, H. W. Collier, T. Grai, S. Haslitt, C. B. Mcgowan May 2008

An Example Of The Use Of Financial Ratio Analysis: The Case Of Motorola, H. W. Collier, T. Grai, S. Haslitt, C. B. Mcgowan

Henry Collier

In this paper, we demonstrate the use of actual financial data for financial ratio analysis. We construct a financial and industry analysis for Motorola Corporation. The objective is to show students exactly how to compute ratios for an actual company. This paper demonstrates the difficulties in applying the principles of financial ratio analysis when the data are not homogeneous as is the case in textbook examples. We use Motorola as an example because the firm has several segments, two of which account for the majority of sales and represent two industries (semi-conductor and communications) that have different characteristics. The case …

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Using Accounting Information For Financial Institution Analysis In An Evolving Environment, H. W. Collier, D. A. Harjito, Carl B. Mcgowan May 2008

Using Accounting Information For Financial Institution Analysis In An Evolving Environment, H. W. Collier, D. A. Harjito, Carl B. Mcgowan

Henry Collier

Return on equity analysis provides a system for planning as well as analyzing financial institution performance. In the case of Malaysia, Bank Negara Malaysia has successfully implemented a merger program for Malaysian banks in order to compete in the face of financial deregulation brought about by globalization. The purpose of this paper is to provide additional insights into the improvement of a bank’s financial situation, i.e. commercial banks, due to the recent series of bank mergers in Malaysia. This paper presents an application of the model for the financial analysis of a bank based on the DuPont system of financial …

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Gay Men And Lesbians In The University Community, H. W. Collier May 2008

Gay Men And Lesbians In The University Community, H. W. Collier

Henry Collier

[Extract] There is little doubt that there are gay and lesbian students, faculty, staff, and administrators in our universities. You may not see all of us unless we want you to, but we are there. Whether you choose to acknowledge our presence is another issue. Historical prejudices against minority groups and those who are 'different' still exist in many parts of the world and in many of our universities. There are significant cultural, religious, national and regional differences in how minority 'tribes' or 'groups' are identified and treated. There is a significant body of research discussing issues of homosexuality and …

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Financial Analysis Of Financial Institutions In An Evolving Environment, H. W. Collier, Carl B. Mcgowan, J. Muhammad May 2008

Financial Analysis Of Financial Institutions In An Evolving Environment, H. W. Collier, Carl B. Mcgowan, J. Muhammad

Henry Collier

This paper presents a model for the financial analysis of a bank based on the DuPont system of financial analysis. The bank return on equity is decomposed into net profit margin, total asset turnover and the equity multiplier. This model is applied to AFFIN Bank Malaysia of which is one of the largest banks in Malaysia for the period from 1999 to 2005. The DuPont system of financial analysis shows the impact of the Asian financial crisis on the financial performance of AFFIN Bank that affected the region in 1997-98. The impact of the financial crisis on AFFIN Bank share …

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A View On The Process Of Accounting Standard Setting In The People’S Republic Of China, Y. Zhang, J. Andrew, H. W. Collier May 2008

A View On The Process Of Accounting Standard Setting In The People’S Republic Of China, Y. Zhang, J. Andrew, H. W. Collier

Henry Collier

This paper is a discussion of how the People’s Republic of China is attempting to revise accounting standards. Historically, China’s accounting standards were dominated by ‘management’ accounting and compliance and achievement of goals and objectives established by central planning authority. As China seeks Foreign Direct Investment in formerly State Owned Enterprises, competitive pressures demand a change of emphasis in financial reporting. Much of the Western world is adapting IFRS for financial reporting. IFRS seems to privilege western dialogue in the adoption and acceptance of standards if PRC wishes to access the world wide capital markets. Consistency and comparability of financial …

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A Comparison Of The Weighted Average Cost Of Capital For Multinational Corporations: The Case Of The Automobile Industry Versus The Soft Drink Industry, C. B. Mcgowan, A. Tessema, H. W. Collier May 2008

A Comparison Of The Weighted Average Cost Of Capital For Multinational Corporations: The Case Of The Automobile Industry Versus The Soft Drink Industry, C. B. Mcgowan, A. Tessema, H. W. Collier

Henry Collier

The object of this paper is to determine to what extent the cost of capital differs across comparisons in different countries. In this paper, wecompare and contract the cost of capital for five countries in the soft drink industry and seven companies in the automobile industry. We find that the weighted average cost of capital for the four largest companies in the soft drink industry are similar and the weighted cost of capital for seven companies in the automobile industry are less similar. Since the companies in this study are all large, multinational companies in a single industry, numerous confounding …

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The Impact Of Family Complexity On The Attitudes Toward An International Career Of Russian Nationals, H. W. Collier, R. E. Jones, Carl B. Mcgowan May 2008

The Impact Of Family Complexity On The Attitudes Toward An International Career Of Russian Nationals, H. W. Collier, R. E. Jones, Carl B. Mcgowan

Henry Collier

This paper examines attitudes of Russian MBA students toward international careers and finds that family complexity impacts responses. Respondents who have complex family situations were slightly favorable toward international careers with average survey response values of about 2.50. The average response values for survey respondents who were not in complex family situations were neutral (3.00) toward an international career. The results of this survey indicate that Russian MBA students are, on average, only slightly favorable toward international careers. The average response values were not different based on gender since the average response value for males was 2.65 and the average …

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The Last Discrimination: Gay Men And Lesbians In The Classroom, H. W. Collier, R. Perrin, C. B. Mcgowan May 2008

The Last Discrimination: Gay Men And Lesbians In The Classroom, H. W. Collier, R. Perrin, C. B. Mcgowan

Henry Collier

A democracy can only be strong when the rights of all the people are protected. If given the opportunity; individuals or groups that promote intolerance, hate, and bigotry will in time deny rights to all. Discrimination is at least as old as recorded history. The Roman Empire and Classical Greek society created a class system. Some were citizens; males only of course as women were treated more like property; others were slaves and traded and owned by others. Some were free men. However, during the early centuries of the Roman Empire and during virtually all of the Classical Greek period, …

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Teaching And Learning In China And Asia: Some Observations, H. W. Collier May 2008

Teaching And Learning In China And Asia: Some Observations, H. W. Collier

Henry Collier

As the ‘Far East’ enters the WTO and the world economy, change is inevitable. The more developed economies will undoubtedly lead the way, and the change agents are more than likely to come from outside the area at least for a while. Beginning in 1973, many of the Chinese students and scholars who studied in the West did not return to China. Many of my current students who have the opportunity to leave do not intend to return. However, there is an increasing number who will return. As more and more of these student graduates return to China and to …

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Financial Institution Analysis In An Evolving Environment: The Case Of The Hong Leong Bank Bhd, H. W. Collier, C. B. Mcgowan, Z. Sulong May 2008

Financial Institution Analysis In An Evolving Environment: The Case Of The Hong Leong Bank Bhd, H. W. Collier, C. B. Mcgowan, Z. Sulong

Henry Collier

Return on equity analysis provides a system for planning as well as analyzing financial institution performance. In the case of Malaysia, Bank Negara Malaysia has successfully implemented a merger program for Malaysian banks in order to face the onslaught of the imminent financial deregulation brought about by globalization. The purpose of this paper is to provide additional insights into the improvement of a bank’s financial situation, i.e. commercial banks, because of the recent series of bank mergers in Malaysia. This paper also presents an application of a model for financial analysis of a bank based on the DuPont system presented …

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Gender And Attitude Toward An International Career: A Survey Of Russian Nationals, H. W. Collier, R. E. Jones, Carl B. Mcgowan May 2008

Gender And Attitude Toward An International Career: A Survey Of Russian Nationals, H. W. Collier, R. E. Jones, Carl B. Mcgowan

Henry Collier

This paper examines attitudes of Russian MBA students toward international careers and finds that gender is not an issue but that respondents with family constraints were less favorable toward an international career. Respondents who are male, single, or with no children were slightly favorable toward international careers. Women and respondents with spouses without a career were neutral toward international careers. Respondents who were married, respondents with children, and respondents with a spouse with a career, were slightly unfavorable toward an international career. The results of this survey indicate that Russian MBA students are, on average, only slightly favorable toward international …

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The Convergence Of Ifrs In China: A View On The Influence Of Political Ideology On Chinese Accounting Profession, Y. Zhang, J. Andrew, H. W. Collier May 2008

The Convergence Of Ifrs In China: A View On The Influence Of Political Ideology On Chinese Accounting Profession, Y. Zhang, J. Andrew, H. W. Collier

Henry Collier

A historical perspective lens may be useful to help people understand the world of accounting and accounting research. Some believe that the role that accounting plays in current society could be better understood by reviewing its historical association with the institutionalization development within which it operates. Accounting as it is practiced in capitalist system has been predominately viewed as a technical and context-free activity. However, if a meta-level concern addressing broad structural and institutional environment from which accounting emanated is absent, there must be doubt that the conventional accounting can claim to be comprehensible and to contain true information. This …

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Computing The Divisional Cost Of Capital Using The Pure Play Method, H. W. Collier, T. Grai, S. Haslitt, C. B. Mcgowan May 2008

Computing The Divisional Cost Of Capital Using The Pure Play Method, H. W. Collier, T. Grai, S. Haslitt, C. B. Mcgowan

Henry Collier

The Cost of Capital Model is used to calculate the net present value of projects within a multi-unit corporation but may provide incorrect answers for projects that have a level of risk that differs from the overall average risk level for the corporation. We demonstrate the use of the Pure Play Method for calculating the required rate of return for a division of a corporation that has risk characteristics that differ from the risk characteristics of the overall corporation. We apply this methodology to the Integrated Electronic Systems Segment of the Motorola Corporation. We find that the IESS division cost …

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Plagiarism: Let The Policy Fix The Crime, H. W. Collier, R. Perrin, C. B. Mcgowan May 2008

Plagiarism: Let The Policy Fix The Crime, H. W. Collier, R. Perrin, C. B. Mcgowan

Henry Collier

Plagiarism is considered to be an unacceptable act, a crime, in today’s University. This is reinforced by the Latin and Greek origins of the word, i.e., meaning to ‘plunder’ or ‘kidnap’. An Australian Vice-Chancellor was recently asked to resign following public allegations and findings of his plagiarism. Universities adopt and publicise policies to illustrate what they expect from their students. We posit that while some students plagiarise for reasons endogenous to those students, others do so as a result of poorly designed and constructed assignments and assessment tasks. From a simple example involving the use of the plagiarism detection software …

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A Documentary Of Innovation Support Among New World Wine Industries, D. K. Aylward May 2008

A Documentary Of Innovation Support Among New World Wine Industries, D. K. Aylward

David K. Aylward

During the past two decades, the international wine industry has undergone a ‘seismic shift’. Old World producers no longer dominate production, export and marketing of wine to the extent that they once did. Instead, New World producers such as California, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand have successfully married production, management, marketing and innovation to emerge as a new force on the global wine landscape. It is the innovation supports within these selected New World industries that this paper seeks to document, in order to highlight different approaches and outcomes and how they may or may not contribute to an …

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Global Pipelines: Profiling Successful Sme Exporters Within The Australian Wine Industry, D. K. Aylward May 2008

Global Pipelines: Profiling Successful Sme Exporters Within The Australian Wine Industry, D. K. Aylward

David K. Aylward

Increasingly, entire industry sectors and individual firms are re-orienting their business strategies to align with the demands of rapid globalization. Sustainable export mechanisms are becoming an integral component of these strategies. Small, medium and large firms are focusing more than ever on marketing goals, branding, distribution channels and production quality in order to address the growing opportunities and challenges of this globalization. An industry in which firms are responding effectively to these opportunities and challenges is the Australian wine industry. In terms of export growth, intensity, diversity and sustainability, this industry is increasingly seen as a template for others. Using …

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Working Together: Innovation And Export Links Within Highly Developed And Embryonic Wine Clusters , D. K. Aylward May 2008

Working Together: Innovation And Export Links Within Highly Developed And Embryonic Wine Clusters , D. K. Aylward

David K. Aylward

This paper examines innovation and export linkages within two distinct levels of wine cluster development. The aim of the paper, using empirical data from the Australian wine industry, is to demonstrate that the association between innovation and export activity intensifies as the cluster develops. The paper uses selected core indicators of innovation and export activity to explore levels of integration within highly developed and embryonic models (In this context, ‘embryonic’ does not relate to the age of the cluster, but rather, its level of sophistication and development). This integration is examined in the context of Porter’s theory of ‘competitive advantage’, …

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Mapping Australia's Wine Exporters, D. K. Aylward May 2008

Mapping Australia's Wine Exporters, D. K. Aylward

David K. Aylward

No abstract provided.

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Global Landscapes: A Speculative Assessment Of Emerging Organizational Structures Within The International Wine Industry, D. K. Aylward May 2008

Global Landscapes: A Speculative Assessment Of Emerging Organizational Structures Within The International Wine Industry, D. K. Aylward

David K. Aylward

As a rapidly evolving sector the international wine industry represents an interesting subject for analysis. Over the past two centuries the industry has experienced a number of major innovations and direction changes. The organizational shifts involved in these changes have been profound. From a monopolization of wine culture through the 19th and much of the 20th century by Europeans, to the emergence of New World operators and their democratic influence, the international wine industry now stands at the edge of another major paradigm shift. This paper traces the industry’s historical changes and speculates on the implications of such issues as …

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