Search results for: corporate profitability

Authors: Abhinav Kumar Rajverma, Arun Kumar Misra, Abhijeet Chandra

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Family involvement in business is universal across countries, with varying characteristics. Firms of developed economies have diffused ownership structure; however, that of emerging markets have concentrated ownership structure, having resemblance with that of family firms. Optimization of dividend payout and leverage are very crucial for firm’s valuation. This paper studies dividend paying behavior of National Stock Exchange listed Indian firms from financial year 2007 to 2016. The final sample consists of 422 firms and of these more than 49% (207) are family firms. Results reveal that family firms pay lower dividend and are more leveraged compared to non-family firms. This unique data set helps to understand dividend behavior and capital structure of sample firms over a long-time period and across varying family ownership concentration. Using panel regression models, this paper examines factors affecting dividend payout and capital structure and establishes a link between the two using Two-stage Least Squares regression model. Profitability shows a positive impact on dividend and negative impact on leverage, confirming signaling and pecking order theory. Further, findings support bankruptcy theory as firm size has a positive relation with dividend and leverage and volatility shows a negative relation with both dividend and leverage. Findings are also consistent with agency theory, family ownership concentration has negative relation with both dividend payments and leverage. Further, the impact of family ownership control confirms the similar finding. The study further reveals that firms with high family ownership concentration (family control) do have an impact on determining the level of private benefits. Institutional ownership is not significant for dividend payments. However, it shows significant negative relation with leverage for both family and non-family firms. Dividend payout and leverage show mixed association with each other. This paper provides evidence of how varying level of family ownership concentration and ownership control influences the dividend policy and capital structure of firms in an emerging market like India and it can have significant contribution towards understanding and formulating corporate dividend policy decisions and capital structure for emerging economies, where majority of firms exhibit behavior of family firm.

Keywords: dividend, family firms, leverage, ownership structure

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Authors: Danny Alexander R. Moreno, Gustavo L. Sartorello, Yuli Andrea P. Bermudez, Richard R. Lobo, Ives Claudio S. Bueno, Augusto H. Gameiro

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Meat production is a significant sector for Brazil's economy; however, the agricultural segment has suffered censure regarding the negative impacts on the environment, which consequently results in climate change. Therefore, it is essential the implementation of nutritional strategies that can improve the environmental performance of livestock. This research aimed to estimate the environmental impact and profitability of the use of yerba mate extract (Ilex paraguariensis) as an additive in the feeding of feedlot lamb. Thirty-six castrated male lambs (average weight of 23.90 ± 3.67 kg and average age of 75 days) were randomly assigned to four experimental diets with different levels of inclusion of yerba mate extract (0, 1, 2, and 4 %) based on dry matter. The animals were confined for fifty-three days and fed with 60:40 corn silage to concentrate ratio. As an indicator of environmental impact, the carbon footprint (CF) was measured as kg of CO₂ equivalent (CO₂-eq) per kg of body weight produced (BWP). The greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions such as methane (CH₄) generated from enteric fermentation, were calculated using the sulfur hexafluoride gas tracer (SF₆) technique; while the CH₄, nitrous oxide (N₂O - emissions generated by feces and urine), and carbon dioxide (CO₂ - emissions generated by concentrate and silage processing) were estimated using the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) methodology. To estimate profitability, the gross margin was used, which is the total revenue minus the total cost; the latter is composed of the purchase of animals and food. The boundaries of this study considered only the lamb fattening system. The enteric CH₄ emission from the lamb was the largest source of on-farm GHG emissions (47%-50%), followed by CH₄ and N₂O emissions from manure (10%-20%) and CO₂ emission from the concentrate, silage, and fossil energy (17%-5%). The treatment that generated the least environmental impact was the group with 4% of yerba mate extract (YME), which showed a 3% reduction in total GHG emissions in relation to the control (1462.5 and 1505.5 kg CO₂-eq, respectively). However, the scenario with 1% YME showed an increase in emissions of 7% compared to the control group. In relation to CF, the treatment with 4% YME had the lowest value (4.1 kg CO₂-eq/kg LW) compared with the other groups. Nevertheless, although the 4% YME inclusion scenario showed the lowest CF, the gross margin decreased by 36% compared to the control group (0% YME), due to the cost of YME as a food additive. The results showed that the extract has the potential for use in reducing GHG. However, the cost of implementing this input as a mitigation strategy increased the production cost. Therefore, it is important to develop political strategies that help reduce the acquisition costs of input that contribute to the search for the environmental and economic benefit of the livestock sector.

Keywords: meat production, natural additives, profitability, sheep

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Authors: J. M. Geyser

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Lamb is a popular meat throughout the world, particularly in Europe, the Middle East and Oceania. However, the conventional lamb industry faces challenges related to environmental sustainability, climate change, consumer health and dwindling profit margins. This has stimulated an increasing demand for organic lamb, as it is perceived to increase environmental sustainability, offer superior quality, taste, and nutritional value, which is appealing to farmers, including small-scale and female farmers, as it often commands a premium price. Despite its advantages, organic lamb production presents challenges, with a significant hurdle being the high production costs encompassing organic certification, lower stocking rates, higher mortality rates and marketing cost. These costs impact the profitability and competitiveness or organic lamb producers, particularly female and small-scale farmers, who often encounter additional obstacles, such as limited access to resources and markets. Therefore, this paper examines the cost of producing organic lambs and its impact on female farmers and raises the research question: “Is organic lamb production the saving grace for female and small-scale farmers?” Objectives include estimating and comparing production costs and profitability or organic lamb production with conventional lamb production, analyzing influencing factors, and assessing opportunities and challenges for female and small-scale farmers. The hypothesis states that organic lamb production can be a viable and beneficial option for female and small-scale farmers, provided that they can overcome high production costs and access premium markets. The study uses a mixed-method approach, combining qualitative and quantitative data. Qualitative data involves semi-structured interviews with ten female and small-scale farmers engaged in organic lamb production in South Africa. The interview covered topics such as farm characteristics, practices, cost components, mortality rates, income sources and empowerment indicators. Quantitative data used secondary published information and primary data from a female farmer. The research findings indicate that when a female farmer moves from conventional lamb production to organic lamb production, the cost in the first year of organic lamb production exceed those of conventional lamb production by over 100%. This is due to lower stocking rates and higher mortality rates in the organic system. However, costs start decreasing in the second year as stocking rates increase due to manure applications on grazing and lower mortality rates due to better worm resistance in the herd. In conclusion, this article sheds light on the economic dynamics of organic lamb production, particularly focusing on its impact on female farmers. To empower female farmers and to promote sustainable agricultural practices, it is imperative to understand the cost structures and profitability of organic lamb production.

Keywords: cost analysis, empowerment, female farmers, organic lamb production

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Authors: Joanna Peksa, Faith Dillon-Lee

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Current developments in the Western economies have turned some universities into corporate institutions driven by practices of production and commodity. Academia is increasingly becoming integrated into national economies as a result of students paying fees and is consequently using business practices in student retention and engagement. With these changes, pedagogy status as a priority within the institution has been changing in light of these new demands. New strategies have blurred the boundaries that separate a student from a client. This led to a change of the dynamic, disrupting the traditional idea of the knowledge market, and emphasizing the corporate aspect of universities. In some cases, where students are seen primarily as a customer, the purpose of academia is no longer to educate but sell a commodity and retain fee-paying students. This paper considers opposing viewpoints on the commodification of higher education, reflecting on the reality of maintaining a pedagogic grounding in an increasingly commercialized sector. By analysing a case study of the Student Success Festival, an event that involved academic and marketing teams, the differences are considered between the respective visions of the pedagogic arm of the university and the corporate. This study argues that the initial concept of the event, based on the principles of gamification, independent learning, and cognitive criticality, was more clearly linked to a grounded pedagogic approach. However, when liaising with the marketing team in a crucial step in the creative process, it became apparent that these principles were not considered a priority in terms of their remit. While the study acknowledges in the power of pedagogy, the findings show that a pact of concord is necessary between different stakeholders in order for students to benefit fully from their learning experience. Nevertheless, while issues of power prevail and whenever power is unevenly distributed, reaching a consensus becomes increasingly challenging and further research should closely monitor the developments in pedagogy in the UK higher education.

Keywords: economic pressure, commodification, pedagogy, gamification, public service, marketization

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Authors: Charles Chikwendu Okpala, Christopher Chukwutoo Ihueze

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As a technique that reduces variation in a product by lessening the sensitivity of the design to sources of variation, rather than by controlling their sources, Taguchi Robust Design entails the designing of ideal goods, by developing a product that has minimal variance in its characteristics and also meets the desired exact performance. This paper examined the concept of the manufacturing approach and its application to brake pad product of an automotive parts manufacturing company. Although the firm claimed that only defects, excess inventory, and over-production were the few wastes that grossly affect their productivity and profitability, a careful study and analysis of their manufacturing processes with the application of Single Minute Exchange of Dies (SMED) tool showed that the waste of waiting is the fourth waste that bedevils the firm. The selection of the Taguchi L9 orthogonal array which is based on the four parameters and the three levels of variation for each parameter revealed that with a range of 2.17, that waiting is the major waste that the company must reduce in order to continue to be viable. Also, to enhance the company’s throughput and profitability, the wastes of over-production, excess inventory, and defects with ranges of 2.01, 1.46, and 0.82, ranking second, third, and fourth respectively must also be reduced to the barest minimum. After proposing -33.84 as the highest optimum Signal-to-Noise ratio to be maintained for the waste of waiting, the paper advocated for the adoption of all the tools and techniques of Lean Production System (LPS), and Continuous Improvement (CI), and concluded by recommending SMED in order to drastically reduce set up time which leads to unnecessary waiting.

Keywords: lean production system, single minute exchange of dies, signal to noise ratio, Taguchi robust design, waste

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Authors: Parisa Golbayani, Dan Wang, Ionut¸ Florescu

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In this work we implement machine learning techniques to financial statement reports in order to asses company’s credit rating. Specifically, the work analyzes the performance of four neural network architectures (MLP, CNN, CNN2D, LSTM) in predicting corporate credit rating as issued by Standard and Poor’s. The paper focuses on companies from the energy, financial, and healthcare sectors in the US. The goal of this analysis is to improve application of machine learning algorithms to credit assessment. To accomplish this, the study investigates three questions. First, we investigate if the algorithms perform better when using a selected subset of important features or whether better performance is obtained by allowing the algorithms to select features themselves. Second, we address the temporal aspect inherent in financial data and study whether it is important for the results obtained by a machine learning algorithm. Third, we aim to answer if one of the four particular neural network architectures considered consistently outperforms the others, and if so under which conditions. This work frames the problem as several case studies to answer these questions and analyze the results using ANOVA and multiple comparison testing procedures.

Keywords: convolutional neural network, long short term memory, multilayer perceptron, credit rating

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Authors: S. F. Wong, W. I. Ho, B. Lin, Q. Huang

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ERP has been used in many enterprises for management, the accuracy of the production forecasting module is vital to the decision making of the enterprise, and the profit is affected directly. Therefore, enhancing the accuracy of the production forecasting module can also increase the efficiency and profitability. To deal with a lot of data, a suitable, reliable and accurate statistics model is necessary. LSSVM and Grey System are two main models to be studied in this paper, and a case study is used to demonstrate how the combination model is effective to the result of forecasting.

Keywords: ERP, grey system, LSSVM, production forecasting

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Authors: Davut Uysal

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Turkish higher education system has experienced some structural changes in recent decades, which resulted in the concentration on English language teaching as a foreign language at high education institutions. However, the number of studies examining the relationship between organizational culture and job satisfaction among language teachers at higher education institutions, who are the key elements of the teaching process, is very limited in the country. The main objective of this study is to find out the perceptions of English language instructors regarding organizational culture and its impact on their job satisfaction at School of Foreign Language, Anadolu University in Turkey. Questionnaire technique was used in data collection, and the collected data was analysed with the help of SPSS data analysis program. The findings of the study revealed that the respondents of the study had positive perceptions regarding current organizational culture indicating satisfaction with co-worker relations and administration, supervision support and the work itself, as well as their satisfaction with the available professional development opportunities provided by their institution. A significant relationship between overall organizational culture and job satisfaction was found in the study. This study also presents some key elements to increase the job satisfaction levels of the language teachers by managing corporate communication and to improve the organisational culture based on the findings of the study as they are two interrelated issues.

Keywords: corporate communication, English teacher, organizational culture, job satisfaction

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Authors: Mohamed Ali Alrabib

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This paper introduces a paleoenvironmental and hydrocarbon show in this well was identified in the interval of Dembaba formation to the Hassaona formation was poor to very poor oil show. And from palaeoenvironmental analysis there is neither particularly good reservoir nor source rock have been developed in the area. Recent palaeoenvironment work undertakes that the sedimentary succession in this area comprises the Upper Paleozoic rock of the Carboniferous and Permian and the Mesozoic (Triassic) sedimentary sequences. No early Paleozoic rocks have been found in this area, these rocks were eroding during the Late Carboniferous and Early Permian time. During Latest Permian and earliest Triassic time evidence for major marine transgression has occurred. From depths 5930-5940 feet, to 10800-10810 feet, the TAI of the Al Guidr, the Bir Al Jaja Al Uotia, Hebilia and the top varies between 3+ to 4-(mature-dry gas). This interval corporate the rest part of the Dembaba Formation. From depth 10800- 10810 feet, until total sediment depth (11944 feet Log) which corporate the rest of the Dembaba and underlying equivalents of the Assedjefar and M rar Formations and the underlying Indeterminate unit (Hassouna Formation) the TAI varies between 4 and 5 (dry gas-black& deformed).

Keywords: paleoenveronments, thermail index, carboniferous, Libya

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Authors: Nyoman Wijana, Chandra Arha

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Disclosures of Intellectual Capital (IC) is a presentation of corporate information assets that are not recorded in the financial statements. This disclosures is very helpful because it provides inform corporate assets are intangible. In the new economic era, the company's intangible assets will determine company's competitive advantage. This study aimed to examine the effect of IC disclosures on market capitalization growth. Observational studies conducted over ten years in 2002-2011. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect for last ten years. One hundred samples of the company's largest market capitalization in 2011 traced back to last ten years. Data that used, are in 2011, 2008, 2005, and 2002 Method that’s used for acquiring the data is content analysis. The analytical method used is Ordinanary Least Square (OLS) and analysis tools are e views 7 This software using Pooled Least Square estimation parameters are specifically designed for panel data. The results of testing analysis showed inconsistent expression levels affect the growth of the market capitalization in each year of observation. The results of this study are expected to motivate the public company in Indonesia to do more voluntary IC disclosures and encourage regulators to make regulations in a comprehensive manner so that all categories of the IC must be disclosed by the company.

Keywords: IC disclosures, market capitalization growth, analytical method, OLS

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Authors: Kristel Faye Tandog

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The State Owned Enterprise (SOE) or also called Public Enterprise (PE) has been playing a vital role in a country’s social and economic development. Following this idea, this study focused on the Factor Structures of Financial Performance of the Local Economic Enterprises (LEEs) namely: Food Court, Market, Slaughterhouse, and Terminal in Matalam, Cotabato. It aimed to determine the profile of the LEEs in terms of organizational structure, manner of creation, years in operation, source of initial operating requirements, annual operating budget, geographical location, and size or description of the facility. This study also included the different financial ratios of LEE that covered a five year period from Calendar Year 2009 to 2013. Primary data using survey questionnaire was administered to 468 respondents and secondary data were sourced out from the government archives and financial documents of the said LGU. There were 12 dominant factors identified namely: “management”, “enforcement of laws”, “strategic location”, “existence of non-formal competitors”, “proper maintenance”, “pricing”, “customer service”, “collection process”, “rentals and services”, “efficient use of resources”, “staffing”, and “timeliness and accuracy”. On the other hand, the financial performance of the LEE of Matalam, Cotabato using financial ratios needs reformatting. This denotes that refinement as to the following ratios: Cash Flow Indicator, Activity, Profitability and Growth is necessary. The cash flow indicator ratio showed difficulty in covering its debts in successive years. Likewise, the activity ratios showed that the LEE had not been effective in putting its investment at work. Moreover, profitability ratios revealed that it had operated in minimum capacity and had incurred net losses and thus, it had a weak profit performance. Furthermore, growth ratios showed that LEE had a declining growth trend particularly in net income.

Keywords: factor structures, financial performance, financial ratios, state owned enterprises

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Authors: Raif Parlakkaya, Huseyin Cetin, Duygu Irdiren

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By the development of World Wide Web, the usage rate of Internet has rapidly grown globally; and provided a basis for the emergence of electronic business. As well as other sectors, the banking sector has adopted the use of internet with the developments in information and communication technologies. Due to the public disclosure and transparency principle of Corporate Governance, the importance of information disclosure of banks on their web sites has increased significantly. For the purpose of this study, a Bank Disclosure Attribute Index (BDAI) in Turkey has been constructed through classifying the information disclosure on banks’ web sites into general, financial, investors and corporate governance attributes. All 47 banks in Turkish Banking System have been evaluated according to the index with the aim of providing a comparison between banks. By Chi Square Test, Pearson Correlation, T-Test, and ANOVA statistical tools, it has been concluded that the majority of banks in Turkey have shared information on their web sites adequately with respect to their total index score. Although there is a positive correlation between various types of information on banks’ web sites, there is no uniformity among them. Also, no significant difference between various types of information disclosure and bank types has been observed. Compared with the total index score averages of the five largest banks in Turkey, there are some banks that need to improve the content of their web sites.

Keywords: internet banking, websites evaluation, customer adoption, Turkey

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Authors: Kuo-Wei Hsu, Wei-Chin Lo

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In these years, urban agriculture development has been wide spreading all over the world. The development of urban agriculture is an evolution process of highly urbanization, as well as an agricultural phenomenon closely related to the development of economy, society and culture in urban areas. It provides densely populated areas with multi-functional uses of land, impacting strategic development of both large and small towns in the area. In addition, the participation of social enterprises keeps industrial competitiveness and makes gains when facing rapid transformation of industrial structures and new patterns of lifestyles in urban areas. They create better living conditions as well as protect the environment with innovative business beliefs, which give new ways for development of urban agriculture. Also, through building up the value chain, these social enterprises are capable of creating value for urban agriculture. Most of research regarding to social enterprises currently explore the relationship between corporate responsibilities and its role play, operational mode and performance and organizational patterns. Merely some of them discuss the function of social entrepreneurship in the development of urban agriculture. Moreover, none of them have explored the value creation for development of urban agriculture processed by social enterprises, as well as how social enterprises operate to increase competitive advantages, which make it possible to achieve industrial innovation, increase corporate value and even provide services with value creation. Therefore, this research mainly reviews current business patterns and operational conditions of social enterprises. This research endowed social responsibilities, and discusses current development process of urban agriculture. This research adopts Value Chain perspective to discuss key factors for value creation with respect to the development of urban agriculture processed by social enterprises. Thereby after organization and integration this research develops the prospect of value creation referring to urban agriculture processed by social enterprises and builds the value chain for urban agriculture. In conclusion, this research explored the relationship between value chain and value creation, which relates to values of customer, enterprise, society and economy referring to the development of urban agriculture uniquely, in consideration of the participation of social enterprises, and hence built the connection between value chain and value creation in the development of urban agriculture by social enterprises. The research found, social enterprises help to enhance the connection between the enterprise value and society value, mold corporate image with social responsibility and create brand value, and therefore impact the increase of economic value.

Keywords: urban agriculture development, value chain, social enterprise, urban systems

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Authors: Fahreza, Yudhi Herliansyah, Harnovinsah

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This study aims to examine how management compensation and auditor reputation effect on corporate tax management in banking using a sample banking companies listed in Indonesia Stock Exchange. At first, this study examines how the influence of management compensation on the implementation of tax management that may be made by management in order to improve the performance of the company. Second, this study also examines the effect of auditor reputation conducting audit on the implementation of the tax management. The population used in this study is the banking companies listed in Indonesia Stock Exchange. The method used was purposive sampling because the samples of this study have certain criteria that are tailored to the purpose of the study. Based on purposive sampling method, the number of samples in this study is 28 samples. Hypothesis tested using multiple regression analysis. The results of this study indicate that on the 5 % significance level, management compensation significantly influenced tax management as measured using the proxy book tax gap. Other result is management compensation does not significantly affect the tax management that measured using a proxy GAAP effective tax rate. In addition the auditor's reputation does significantly influence tax management as measured using the proxy book tax gap and GAAP effective tax rate.

Keywords: tax management, management compensation, auditor reputation, corporate characteristic

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Authors: Jiayun Shen, Lorenz Wyss, Thierry Golliard, Matthias Finger

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Innovation is widely recognized as the key for private enterprises to win the market competition. The state-owned-enterprises need to be innovative to compete in the market after the privatization as well. However, it is a lack of research to study how state-owned-enterprises manage innovation to create new products and services. Swiss Post, a Swiss state-owned-enterprises, has established a department to transform the corporate culture and foster innovation to achieve digital transformation. This paper describes the innovation management process at the Swiss Post and analyzes the impacts of the instruments, the organizational structure, and explores the barriers of innovation. This study used qualitative methods based on a review of the literature on innovation management and semi-structured interviews. Being established for over five years, the Swiss Post’s innovation management department has established a software-assisted modularized platform with systematic instruments to help the internal employees with the different innovation processes. It guides the innovators from idea creation to piloting in markets and supports with a separate financing source, with knowledge inputs and coaching, as well as with connections to external partners through the open innovation and venturing team. The platform also adapts to different business units within the corporate with a customized tailor for the various operational business units. The separate financing instruments enabled the creation and further development of new ideas; the coaching services contribute greatly to the transformation of teams’ innovation culture by providing new knowledge, thinking methods, and use cases for inspiration. It also facilitates organizational learning to help the whole corporate with the digital transformation. However, it is also confronted with a big challenge in twofold. Internally, the disruptive projects often hardly overcome the obstacles of long-established operational processes in the traditional business units; externally, the expectations of the public and restrictions from the federal government have become high hurdles for the company to stay and compete in the innovation track.

Keywords: empirical case study, innovation management, state-owned-enterprise, Swiss Post

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Authors: Mehdi Asgarkhani

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Today, investment on Information Technology (IT) solutions in most organizations is the largest component of capital expenditure. As capital investment on IT continues to grow, IT managers and strategists are expected to develop and put in practice effective decision making models (frameworks) that improve decision-making processes for the use of IT in organizations and optimize the investment on IT solutions. To be exact, there is an expectation that organizations not only maximize the benefits of adopting IT solutions but also avoid the many pitfalls that are associated with rapid introduction of technological change. Different organizations depending on size, complexity of solutions required and processes used for financial management and budgeting may use different techniques for managing strategic investment on IT solutions. Decision making processes for strategic use of IT within organizations are often referred to as IT Governance (or Corporate IT Governance). This paper examines IT governance - as a tool for best practice in decision making about IT strategies. Discussions in this paper represent phase I of a project which was initiated to investigate trends in strategic decision making on IT strategies. Phase I is concerned mainly with review of literature and a number of case studies, establishing that the practice of IT governance, depending on the complexity of IT solutions, organization's size and organization's stage of maturity, varies significantly – from informal approaches to sophisticated formal frameworks.

Keywords: IT governance, corporate governance, IT governance frameworks, IT governance components, aligning IT with business strategies

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Authors: Stephanie Gracelyn Rahaman, Chew Yin Teng, Manjit Singh Sandhu

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Corporate scandals have made stakeholders apprehensive of large companies and expect greater transparency in CSR matters. However, companies find it challenging to strategically communicate CSR to intended stakeholders and in the process may fall short on maximizing on CSR efforts. Given that stakeholders have the ability to either reward good companies or take legal action or boycott against corporate brands who do not act socially responsible, companies must create shared understanding of their CSR activities. As a result, communication has become a strategy for many companies to demonstrate CSR engagement and to minimize stakeholder skepticism. The main objective of this research is to examine the types of CSR communication strategies and predictors that guide CSR communication strategies. Employing Morsing & Schultz’s guide on CSR communication strategies, the study integrates stakeholder and institutional theory to develop a conceptual framework. The conceptual framework hypothesized that stakeholder (instrumental and normative) and institutional (regulatory environment, nature of business, mimetic intention, CSR focus and corporate objectives) dimensions would drive CSR communication strategies. Preliminary findings from semi-structured interviews in Malaysia are consistent with the conceptual model in that stakeholder and institutional expectations guide CSR communication strategies. Findings show that most companies use two-way communication strategies. Companies that identified employees, the public or customers as key stakeholders have started to embrace social media to be in-sync with new trends of communication. This is especially with the Gen Y which is their priority. Some companies creatively use multiple communication channels because they recognize different stakeholders favor different communication channels. Therefore, it appears that companies use two-way communication strategies to complement the perceived limitation of one-way communication strategies as some companies prefer a more interactive platform to strategically engage stakeholders in CSR communication. In addition to stakeholders, institutional expectations also play a vital role in influencing CSR communication. Due to industry peer pressures, corporate objectives (attract international investors and customers), companies may be more driven to excel in social performance. For these reasons companies tend to go beyond the basic mandatory requirement, excel in CSR activities and be known as companies that champion CSR. In conclusion, companies use more two-way than one-way communication and companies use a combination of one and two-way communication to target different stakeholders resulting from stakeholder and institutional dimensions. Finally, in order to find out if the conceptual framework actually fits the Malaysian context, companies’ responses for expected organizational outcomes from communicating CSR were gathered from the interview transcripts. Thereafter, findings are presented to show some of the key organizational outcomes (visibility and brand recognition, portray responsible image, attract prospective employees, positive word-of-mouth, etc.) that companies in Malaysia expect from CSR communication. Based on these findings the conceptual framework has been refined to show the new identified organizational outcomes.

Keywords: CSR communication, CSR communication strategies, stakeholder theory, institutional theory, conceptual framework, Malaysia

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Authors: Chenghao Ma

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This paper mainly examines and compares the primary revenue sources in the professional sports, intercollegiate sports, and sporting goods industries in the U.S. In the professional team sport, revenues may come from different resources, including broadcasting rights, ticket sales, corporate partnerships, naming rights, licensed merchandise, luxury suites, club seating, ancillary activities, and transfer fees. Many universities use university budgets and student fees to cover the cost of collegiate athletics. Other sources of revenue include ticket sales, broadcast rights, concessions, corporate partnerships, cash contributions from alumni, and others. Revenues in the sporting goods industry are very different compared with professional sports teams and collegiate athletics. Sporting goods companies mainly sell a line of products and equipment to generate revenue. Revenues are critical for sports organizations, including professional sports teams, intercollegiate athletics, and sporting goods companies. There are similarities and differences among these areas. Sports managers are looking for new ways to generate revenues, and there are many changes of sources because of the development of the internet and technology. Compared with intercollegiate athletics, professional sport and sporting goods companies will create more revenue opportunities globally.

Keywords: revenue sources, professional sports, intercollegiate athletics, sporting goods industry

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Authors: Norah Salem Al Mosa

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This paper critically examines the ethical position of academic scholarship concerning "women in leadership" in Saudi Arabia, focusing on the context of the Saudi Vision 2030 initiative. While this vision places a strong emphasis on empowering women and increasing their presence in the workforce, women still face significant cultural, organisational, and personal barriers to leadership roles. The existing literature highlights the challenges Saudi women encounter, including the male guardianship system, and international perspectives add complexity to the issue. The debate among scholars about considering cultural context versus highlighting ongoing challenges is explored. The paper underscores that despite efforts to enhance women's representation in leadership positions, progress has been slow due to cultural norms, the absence of legal quotas, and limited access to education and professional development. It raises questions about the seriousness of research efforts and the government's commitment to gender equality in leadership roles, emphasising the need for increased academic scrutiny in this area. Ultimately, the paper aims to enhance understanding of the challenges and opportunities for women in leadership roles, their contributions to corporate governance in Saudi Arabia, and potential implications beyond its borders.

Keywords: female directors, gender diversity, women on executive positions, Saudi vision 2030

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Authors: M. J. Alcedo, K. Ito, K. Maeda

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A stockperson has a significant influence on the productivity and welfare of their animals. This influence may be good or bad depending on their stockmanship competence. In this study, stockmanship competence (SC) is defined as the capacity of the stockperson to ensure the welfare of their animals by providing their animal’s needs. The study was conducted to evaluate the stockmanship competence of backyard goat raisers and to examine its relationship to productivity and economic profitability. This was made possible by interviewing 101 backyard goat raisers who have undergone farmer livestock school on integrated goat management (FLS IGM) in Region I, Philippines on September 3-30, 2012 and March 4-17, 2013. Secondary data needed were gathered from the local government agencies involved. Data on stockmanship, goat productivity and farmer’s income before and after attending FLS-IGM were gathered through a semi-structured interview. Questions for stockamnship were based on the Philippine recommends on goat production, tips on goat raising and other scientific literature. Stockmanship competence index score (SCIS) was computed by summing the raw scores derived from each components of SC divided by the total number of components. Pearson correlation through SPSS was used to see the relationship between SC, productivity and income. Result showed that majority raised native and upgraded goats. The computed mean SCIS before and after undergoing FLS-IGM was 38.53% and 75.81%, respectively, an improvement of 49.17%. Both index scores resulted in significant differences in productivity and income. The median mature weight and mortality rate of goats before FLS-IGM, where SC was low, was 14 kg and 50% respectively. On the other hand, after stockmanship had improved, the median mature weight increased to 19 kgs and mortality rate decreased to 11.11%. Likewise, fewer goat diseases were observed by farmers as compared before. With regards to income, there was 127.34% difference on the median net income derived by farmers. Result implies that improved stockmanship competence can lead not only to increased productivity and income of backyard goat raisers but also welfare of the animal.

Keywords: stockmanship, backyard goat production, animal welfare, Philippines

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Authors: Fedil Jemal Ahmed

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This conference abstract paper presents a study that aimed to explore the impact of talent management and business skills on performance improvement in mini markets located in Johannesburg and Cape Town, South Africa. Mini markets are small retail stores that play a crucial role in providing essential goods and services to communities. However, due to their small size, they often face significant challenges in terms of resources and management. The study conducted interviews with mini market owners and managers in Johannesburg and Cape Town to understand their approach to talent management, business skills, and their impact on business performance. The results showed that effective talent management practices, including recruitment, training, and retention, along with strong business skills, had a significant positive impact on business performance in mini markets. Furthermore, the study found that the use of technology, such as point of sale systems and inventory management software, can also contribute to business performance improvement in mini markets. The results suggest that mini market owners and managers should prioritize talent management, business skills, and invest in technology to improve their business performance. Comparing the improvements made by mini markets in Johannesburg and Cape Town to those made by others, the study found that the adoption of effective talent management practices and strong business skills were key factors in driving performance improvement. Mini market owners and managers who invested in these areas were better equipped to manage their resources, enhance their customer service, and increase their profitability. When comparing the personal experiences of the fedil jemal who improved their business performance from a small market to a large one, they found that effective talent management practices and strong business skills were crucial in achieving success. Through the adoption of effective talent management practices, the fedil was able to attract and retain top talent, ensuring that the business was managed effectively. Furthermore, the fedil invested in improving their business skills, such as financial management, marketing, and customer service, which helped to increase their revenue and profitability. In terms of technology adoption, the author found that the use of point-of-sale systems and inventory management software were essential in managing their inventory and improving their customer service. By investing in technology, the fedil was able to streamline their operations and enhance their overall business performance. In conclusion, this study provides valuable insights into the importance of talent management, business skills, and technology adoption in improving business performance in mini markets. It highlights the need for mini market owners and managers to prioritize these areas and invest in them to enhance their business performance. The findings of this study have practical implications for mini market owners and managers who are looking to improve their business performance and compete in a highly competitive market. By adopting effective talent management practices, developing strong business skills, and investing in technology, mini market owners and managers can improve their operations and increase their profitability.

Keywords: talent management, business skills, technology adoption, mini markets

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Authors: Helena Susana Afonso Alves, Natália Maria Rafael Canadas, Ana Maria Rodrigues

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We examined the impact of governance rules on information asymmetry, using the turnover ratio and the bid-ask spread as proxies for the information asymmetry. We used a SEM model and analyzed the indirect relations through the voluntary disclosure of information and the organizational performance. We built a voluntary disclosure index based on the information firms provided in their annual reports and divided the governance characteristics in two constructs: directors’ and supervisors’ structures and ownership structure. We concluded that the ownership structure exerts a direct influence on share price and share liquidity, Otherwise, the directors’ and supervisors’ structures exert an indirect influence, through the organizational performance and the voluntary disclosure of information. The results also show that for firms with high levels of disclosure the bid-ask spread is lower. However, in firms with a high ownership concentration investors tend to increase the bid-ask spreads and trade less, which, in this case, reduces the liquidity of the stock. The failure to find the relationship between voluntary disclosure of information and the turnover ratio shows us that the liquidity of shares is more related to the greater or lesser concentration of shareholders, with the performance of their companies than with the access to information. Moreover, it is clear that the role that information disclosure plays is mainly at the level of price formation.

Keywords: corporate governance, information asymmetry, voluntary disclosure, structural equation modelling, SEM

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Authors: Ekaterina Tikhonova

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This research is aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of T&D (Training and Development) on the example of two T&D programs for the Executive TOP Management run in 2012, 2015-2016 in Komos Group. This study is commissioned to research the effectiveness of two similar corporate T&D programs (within one company) in two periods of time (2012, 2015-2016) through evaluating the programs’ effectiveness using the four-level Kirkpatrick’s model of evaluating T&D programs and calculating ROI as an instrument for T&D program measuring by Phillips’ formula. The research investigates the correlation of two figures: the ROI calculated and the rating percentage scale per the ROI implementation (Wagle’s scale). The study includes an assessment of feedback 360 (Kirkpatrick's model) and Phillips’ ROI Methodology that provides a step-by-step process for collecting data, summarizing and processing the collected information. The data is collected from the company accounting data, the HR budgets, MCFO and the company annual reports for the research periods. All analyzed data and reports are organized and presented in forms of tables, charts, and graphs. The paper also gives a brief description of some constrains of the research considered. After ROI calculation, the study reveals that ROI ranges between the average implementation (65% to 75%) by Wagle’s scale that can be considered as a positive outcome. The paper also gives some recommendations how to use ROI in practice and describes main benefits of ROI implementation.

Keywords: ROI, organizational performance, efficacy of T&D program, employee performance

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Authors: Asif Iqbal

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Working capital management has its effect on liquidity as well as on profitability of a firm. In this research we have selected a sample of 100 respondents whose firms are listed on Karachi stock exchange. We have studied the effect of different variable s of working capital management. We find that organizations throughout the world as well as in Pakistan have to give immense recognition to the working capital management as it is an effective thing from their long term perspective especially to their shareholders to have a firm confidence over the companies for investment purpose.

Keywords: working capital management, Karachi stock exchange, shareholders, capital management

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Authors: Abdul Ghafar, Malini Nair

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Non-governmental organizations have been seemed to struggle the battle of balancing many concerns with corporates which may impact on their financial solvency. Some of these concerns relates to uphold the relationship where weighing up the impacts of their involvement with corporates takes priority over the main purpose of creating valuable impacts for communities. To some extent, it can be argued that NGOs are influenced by corporates’ power to tackle contemporary issues rather than eradicating the root causes of such issues and transform the results into more sustainable manner. NGOs spend massive amount of energy, time and resources in order to move some corporates to embrace their social responsibilities. It has become a norm, where an active NGO that is becoming more successful on building partnerships with corporates is perceived to be more socially responsible. In contrast to this, as some researchers argue that the social responsibility for NGOs is not a voluntary act; they must exhibit the core values in all their practices require much attention to address. This article stresses the need of understanding ‘Social Responsibility’ of NGOs that stem from an argument that NGOs tend to act on narrow mandate rather than considering broader outcomes of their CSR initiatives. This paper argues that NGOs must focus on building capabilities of the recipients from CSR initiatives which should serve as a core value of partnerships mandate between NGOs, Corporates and Governments. We argue that SEN’s Capabilities Approach can further enhance the mainstream CSR agenda of NGOs which seems to incline more towards providing palliative solutions to social issues.

Keywords: non-profit organization, corporate social responsibility, partnerships, capabilities approach

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Authors: Shoumodip Roy, Ankit Singhania, M. K. G. Choudhury, Santanu Mallick, M. K. Agarwal, R. V. Ramna, Uttam Singh

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One of the key corporate goals of Tata Steel company is to demonstrate Environment Leadership. Decreasing specific CO₂ emission is one of the key steps to achieve the stated corporate goal. At any Blast Furnace, specific CO₂ emission is directly proportional to fuel intake. To reduce the fuel intake at G Blast Furnace, an initial benchmarking exercise was carried out with international and domestic Blast Furnaces to determine the potential for improvement. The gap identified during the exercise revealed that the benchmark Blast Furnaces operated with superior raw material quality than that in G Blast Furnace. However, since the raw materials to G Blast Furnace are sourced from the captive mines, improvement in the raw material quality was out of scope. Therefore, trials were taken with different operating regimes, to identify the key process parameters, which on optimization could significantly reduce the fuel intake in G Blast Furnace. The key process parameters identified from the trial were the Stoichiometric Oxygen Ratio, Melting Capacity ratio and the burden distribution inside the furnace. These identified process parameters were optimized to bridge the gap in fuel intake at G Blast Furnace, thereby reducing specific CO₂ emission to benchmark levels. This paradigm shift enabled to lower the fuel intake by 70kg per ton of liquid iron produced, thereby reducing the specific CO₂ emission by 15 percent.

Keywords: benchmark, blast furnace, CO₂ emission, fuel rate

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Authors: Shuofen Hsu, Ya-Yi Chao, Chao-Wei Li

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This paper investigates the factors of whether firms’ quarterly consolidated financial statements to be voluntary reviewed by auditor. To promote the information transparency, the Financial Supervisory Commission of Executive Yuan in Taiwan ruled the Taiwanese listed companies should announce the first and third quarterly consolidated financial statements since 2008 to 2012, while the Commission didn’t require the consolidated financial statements should be reviewed by auditors. This is a very special practice in emerging market, especially in Taiwan. The valuable data of this period is suitable for us to research the determinants of firms’ voluntary review decision in emerging markets. We collected the auditors' report of each company and each year of Taiwanese listed companies since 2008 to 2012 for our research samples. We use probit model to test and analyze the determinants of voluntary review decision of the first and third quarterly consolidated financial statements. Our empirical result shows that the firms whose first and third quarterly consolidated financial statements are voluntary to be reviewed by auditors have better ranking of information transparency, higher audit quality, and better corporate governance, suggesting that voluntary review is a good signal to firms’ better information and corporate governance quality.

Keywords: voluntary review, information transparency, audit quality, quarterly consolidated financial statements

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Authors: D. Garg, S. Luthra, A. Haleem

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Due to growing concern about environmental and social consequences throughout the world, a need has been felt to incorporate sustainability concepts in conventional manufacturing. This paper is an attempt to identify and evaluate drivers in implementing sustainable manufacturing in Indian context. Nine possible drivers for successful implementation of sustainable manufacturing have been identified from extensive review. Further, Decision Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) approach has been utilized to evaluate and categorize these identified drivers for implementing sustainable manufacturing in to the cause and effect groups. Five drivers (Societal Pressure and Public Concerns; Regulations and Government Policies; Top Management Involvement, Commitment and Support; Effective Strategies and Activities towards Socially Responsible Manufacturing and Market Trends) have been categorized into the cause group and four drivers (Holistic View in Manufacturing Systems; Supplier Participation; Building Sustainable culture in Organization; and Corporate Image and Benefits) have been categorized into the effect group. “Societal Pressure and Public Concerns” has been found the most critical driver and “Corporate Image and Benefits” as least critical or the most easily influenced driver to implementing sustainable manufacturing in Indian context. This paper may surely help practitioners in better understanding of these drivers and their priorities towards effective implementation of sustainable manufacturing.

Keywords: drivers, decision making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL), India, sustainable manufacturing

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Authors: Anouschka Swart

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In 2023, sport faces a plethora of challenges including but not limited to match-fixing, corruption and doping to its integrity that, threatens both the commercial and public appeal. The continuous changes and commercialisation that has occurred within sport have led to a variety of consequences resulting in the need for ethics to be revived, as it used to be in the past to ensure sport is not in danger. In order to understand governance better, the Institute of Directors in Southern Africa, a global network of professional firms providing Audit, Tax and Advisory services, outlined a process explaining all elements with regards to corporate governance. This process illustrates a governing body’s responsibilities as strategy, policy, oversight and accountability. These responsibilities are further elucidated to 16 governing principles which are highlighted as essential for all organisations in order to achieve and deliver on effective governance outcomes. These outcomes are good ethical culture, good performance, effective control and legitimacy therefore, the aim of the study was to investigate the general state of governance within the clubs affiliated with a rugby club in South Africa by utilizing the King IV Code as the framework. The results indicated that the King Code IV principles are implemented by these rugby clubs to ensure they demonstrate commitment to corporate governance to both internal and external stakeholders. It is however evident that a similar report focused solely on sport is a necessity in the industry as this will provide more clarity on sport specific problems.

Keywords: South Africa, sport, King IV, responsibilities

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Authors: Jo Rhodes, Bruce Bergstrom, Peter Lok, Vincent Cheng

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The aim of this study is to determine key factors and processes for multinationals (MNCs) to develop an effective stakeholder engagement and sustainable development framework. A qualitative multiple-case approach was used. A triangulation method was adopted (interviews, archival documents and observations) to collect data on three global firms (MNCs). 9 senior executives were interviewed for this study (3 from each firm). An initial literature review was conducted to explore possible practices and factors (the deductive approach) to sustainable development. Interview data were analysed using Nvivo to obtain appropriate nodes and themes for the framework. A comparison of findings from interview data and themes, factors developed from the literature review and cross cases comparison were used to develop the final conceptual framework (the inductive approach). The results suggested that stakeholder engagement is a key mediator between ‘stakeholder network’ (internal and external factors) and outcomes (corporate social responsibility, social capital, shared value and sustainable development). Key internal factors such as human capital/talent, technology, culture, leadership and processes such as collaboration, knowledge sharing and co-creation of value with stakeholders were identified. These internal factors and processes must be integrated and aligned with external factors such as social, political, cultural, environment and NGOs to achieve effective stakeholder engagement.

Keywords: stakeholder, engagement, sustainable development, shared value, corporate social responsibility

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