bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Quality of learning facilities and learning environment
Authors: Ndirangu Mwangi , Udoto Maurice O. 
Published: July 2011

PurposeThe purpose of this article is to report findings on the perceptions of quality of educational facilities in Kenyan public universities, and the implications for teaching/learning, and the learning environment.Design/methodology/approachThe study adopted an exploratory descriptive design. A total of 332 and 107 undergraduate students and academic staff respectively from five public universities were randomly selected to participate in the study. The questionnaire was used for data collection.FindingsThe quality of the library, online resources and lecture facilities provided by Kenyan public universities did not meet quality measures of adequacy. They were unable to support the desired educational programmes effectively and facilitate the development of learning environments that support students and teachers in achieving their goals. The facilities were the antithesis of healthy and secure facilities that can provide a stimulating/inspirational setting for the users, critical measures of quality facilities.Research limitations/implicationsThe study investigated the quality of learning resources from the perspectives of students and academic staff. Other stakeholders could have given additional perspectives not reported here.Practical implicationsPerceptions of quality of facilities indicated in this study show the need for university managers to focus on the improvement of the same if the quality of learning and learning environment were to be improved.Social implicationsKenya's public universities can only develop the right calibre of manpower to meet the country's future needs by providing physical and other facilities that promote rigorous scholarship.Originality/valueImprovement in quality of educational facilities is important for all interested in enhancing student learning and learning environment anywhere.
Optimizing investment decisions in selecting information security remedies
Authors: Shirtz Dov , Elovici Yuval 
Published: July 2011

PurposeThis paper proposes a new framework for optimizing investment decisions when deciding about information security remedies.Design/methodology/approachThe framework assumes that the organization is aware of a set of remedies that can be employed to address end‐effects that have been identified. The framework also assumes that the organization defines its information security policy by setting a minimum level of protection for each end‐effect. Given the two sets of costs, that of the end‐effect and the potential damage it can cause and that of the remedy and the required level of protection from each end‐effect, this framework can be used to identify the optimal set of remedies for a given budget that complies with the organization's information security policy. The framework is illustrated using a practical example concerning investment decision optimization in a financial organization.FindingsThe paper shows that exhausting the information security budget does not assure a higher level of security required by the organisation.Practical implicationsConcentrating on end‐effects and on the organizational requirements eases the process of remedy selection. The proposed methodology circumvents the common process of assuming probabilities of information security events.Originality/valueThis research proposes a practical and an easily implementable framework, enabling the information security manager to align the information security remedies and best practice methodological requirements with organizational budget constraints and business requirements while maintaining a required level of security.
The 14‐layered framework for including social and organizational aspects in security management
Authors: Monfelt Yvgne , Pilemalm Sofie , Hallberg Jonas , Yngström Louise 
Published: July 2011

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to describe the controlled information security project which is designed to investigate, assess and provide tools to improve the information security status in organizations with a focus on public agencies. A central question for the project is how information security issues are communicated within organizations, specifically underlining that communication is control in a cybernetic sense.Design/methodology/approachThe research method applied can be expressed as applied general systems theory combined with design science. The project is carried out in a number of steps: to design modelling techniques and metrics for information security issues in organizations; to collect data from Swedish governmental agencies; to use the modelling techniques to model communication of information security in organizations from different perspectives; to apply metrics on the data in order to assess information security levels in the agencies; to identify gaps; and to identify needs for improvement.FindingsThe motivation for the research is that communication of information security issues within organizations tend to be insufficient and the mental connections between IT‐security and information security work are weak, which prohibits the organization from learning and adapting in its security work. An entity's authority depends on its ability to control and manage the variety in the 14 layers. The general control objectives needed were implied based on the information security management standard.Originality/valueThe paper focuses on mind to mind communication conditions and how to adapt mechanistic systems.
The politics of sameness in the Australian construction industry
Authors: Loosemore Martin , Phua Florence T.T. , Dunn Kevin , Ozguc Umut 
Published: July 2011

PurposeAustralian construction sites are culturally diverse workplaces. This paper aims to compare operative and manager attitudes towards cultural diversity on Australian construction sites, and to examine the strategies that are used to manage it.Design/methodology/approachA face‐to‐face questionnaire survey was undertaken of 1,155 construction operatives and 180 supervisors on Australian construction sites.FindingsThe vast majority of operatives and managers are comfortable with cultural diversity. However, there is some anxiety about cultural diversity, especially around safety risks, and there is evidence of racism. Those concerns are more keenly perceived by operatives than by managers. Both operatives and managers see some of the negative issues (discrimination, racist joke telling) as inevitable daily outcomes of cultural diversity on sites. The normalisation of these negative forms of cross‐cultural interaction reveals a pessimistic disposition towards cultural diversity. Cultural diversity policy, and programs, are not seen as a priority by managers, and some see such strategies (e.g. affirmative action plans) as discriminatory, and unfair, since they may favour some groups over others.Originality/valueNo research has compared operative and management attitudes towards cultural diversity in the Australian construction sector. This paper provides a first glimpse into the value attributed to cultural diversity programs by managers within construction sites. These insights will be of value to managers and supervisors who have to manage multicultural workforces in the construction industry. Conceptually, the paper reveals how the “politics of sameness” are hegemonic within the construction industry, presenting as an a priori anxiety towards difference, the normalising of poor cross‐cultural relations, the non‐prioritising of policies to better manage cultural diversity or their ad hoc adoption.
Criteria for achieving efficient contractor‐supplier relations
Authors: Frödell Mikael 
Published: July 2011

PurposeDespite numerous examples of benefits when adapting supplier relationship management in the manufacturing industry, the construction industry still lags behind in such areas as long‐term relationships with suppliers and continuous cost‐reductions. This may be because the characteristics of the construction industry differ from those of the manufacturing industry due to their project‐based structure, its inherent tendency for sub‐optimization and the vast number and variety of suppliers. The purpose of this study is to identify criteria for achieving efficient contractor‐supplier relations in the construction industry and for large contractors.Design/methodology/approachThe paper draws on the literature on efficiency and differentiation of efficient buyer‐supplier relationships as well as a two‐year case study based on participatory observations and interviews with strategic purchasers at a large Swedish contractor.FindingsAs it is not always possible to increase efficiency in the interface‐related value‐creating processes by only aiming the development and improvement efforts directly at these processes, relationship enablers such as total cost focus, aligned core values as well as willingness and capability for collaboration and development must first be in place. In order to achieve this, the contractor has to adopt a long‐term orientation towards the relationship with the suppliers, which is a decision for the management to make.Practical implicationsDrawing from the findings, this paper elucidates the connection between increased efficiency and input variables in the contractor‐supplier relationship, which might be difficult for contractors to see. Furthermore, contractors need to take responsibility over their own processes in order to be an attractive customer to the supplier.Originality/valueEven though research within construction has focused on relations between different actors, mostly client and contractor, this paper widens the perspective and takes a grasp of the relationship between contractor and supplier.
Real and accrual‐based earnings management and its legal consequences
Authors: Ibrahim Salma , Xu Li , Rogers Genese 
Published: July 2011

PurposePrior research suggests that firms manipulate earnings through accruals to achieve certain reporting objectives. Recently, especially following the Sarbanes‐Oxley (SarbOx) Act, researchers have turned their attention to real account manipulation as an alternative. However, there is no evidence on whether the likelihood of being detected by outsiders is different for firms using these alternative manipulation methods. The purpose of this paper is to examine this research question in the context of seasoned equity offerings (SEOs).Design/methodology/approachFirst, the authors compare SEOs to a matched sample of non‐SEOs to document income‐increasing manipulation. Next, they identify SEOs that prompt lawsuits and compare sued and non‐sued firms to determine whether using a particular method of manipulation is more likely to be detected and associated with litigation.FindingsThe authors find evidence of income‐increasing accrual and real manipulation for SEOs in the year prior to the offering in the pre‐SarbOx period, and find some evidence of a shift to real account manipulation post‐SarbOx. The authors examine the subsequent litigation pattern of these SEOs, and find that firms that are subsequently sued have a higher prevalence of income‐increasing discretionary accruals when the lawsuit allegations involve accounting issues. Following SarbOx, investors are paying less attention to accrual manipulation through accounts receivable and there is more scrutiny of real account manipulation.Originality/valueThe implication in this paper is that firms that engage in income‐increasing earnings management are more likely to be sued when they engage in accrual manipulation while other forms of manipulation may be less understood. This finding is important to investors and regulators.
Relative audit fees and client loyalty in the audit market
Authors: Farag Magdy , Elias Rafik 
Published: July 2011

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the stability or loyalty in the auditor‐client relationship. It explores the association between audit fees and auditor loyalty. Specifically, it investigates whether clients paying less audit fees relative to other companies in their industries are more likely to be loyal to their auditors.Design/methodology/approachLogistic and ordinal regression analyses are used to compare loyal clients to clients that switched audit firms after controlling for factors that are expected to be associated with client loyalty.FindingsResults show that relative audit fees have a significant effect on the degree of loyalty of clients to their audit firms. Additional analysis shows that the loyalty of clients that pay higher audit fees relative to similar clients in their industry are highly affected by increases in audit fees. However, the loyalty of clients who pay lower audit fees compared to similar clients in their industry is not affected by further increases in relative audit fees.Research limitations/implicationsThe study does not differentiate between auditor dismissal and auditor resignation in the classification of clients that switched auditors. It also does not classify auditor switches into auditor‐initiated switches and client‐initiated switches.Practical implicationsIt is cost effective for clients to stay with the same audit firm. Audit firms should be careful when adjusting their audit fees from one period to another, as there is a higher probability of losing a client, when increasing the audit fees, especially if this client is already paying higher audit fees relative to similar clients.Originality/valueThe findings of this study increase the understanding of how relative audit fees affect client loyalty in the audit market.
Attitudes towards questionable negotiation tactics in Turkey
Authors: Erkuş Ahmet , Banai Moshe 
Published: July 2011

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of individualism‐collectivism, trust, and ethical ideology on ethically questionable negotiation tactics, such as pretending, deceiving and lying, in Turkey.Design/methodology/approachSurvey questionnaires translated from English to Turkish were administered to 400 respondents, of whom 379 fully completed the questionnaires.FindingsThe research empirically corroborated a classification of three groups of negotiation tactics, namely, pretending, deceiving and lying. Turkish negotiators who scored high on horizontal individualism tended to score highly on pretending and deceiving and less on lying, and presented an inverse relationship between scores on those tactics and score on idealism. Trust was not found to be related to any of the negotiation tactics.Research limitations/implicationsThe study investigated the respondents' perceptions rather than their actual negotiation behavior. The sample size, though large and inclusive of public and private sector employees, provided limited ability to generalize Turkish negotiator conduct.Practical implicationsThe study provides hints to managers negotiating in Turkey of the extent to which Turkish managers would employ ethically questionable negotiation tactics.Originality/valueThis empirical field research is the first to present a model of the antecedents of negotiation tactics in Turkey, a country where negotiation studies are limited and are mostly conducted within the safe controls of the laboratory.
Stock option compensation
Authors: Dhar Satyajit , De Subhabrata 
Published: July 2011

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the impact on selected financial performance indicators of Indian firms adopting employee stock option (ESO) schemes, if they recognize expenses and adopting fair‐value method of accounting pursuant to International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) 2.Design/methodology/approachThe CMIE Prowess database was searched for Indian firms having stock option schemes and issue of shares pursuant to that scheme during the years ended 31 March 2007 and 31 March 2008. The data on financial performance were hand picked from the annual report of the sample companies. The impact of expense recognition on financial performance indicators were computed by using memorandum disclosures in directors' reports on use of fair value methods for ESO accounting. A non‐parametric Kruskal‐Wallis test was employed to find out the statistical significance of the impact. The role of firm growth characteristics on impact of expense recognition was also investigated.FindingsThe impact of recognizing expenses associated with stock option compensation varies considerably by entity and such recognition would have a material impact on key performance measure for at least 22 percent of the sample companies. Contrary to expectation, firm growth characteristics were found to have no statistical significance in explaining impact of expense recognition.Research limitations/implicationsThe sample is restricted to India and may not be reflective of other countries. Also, this study considers the impact of expense recognition as if the requirements of IFRS 2 were adopted in 2006‐2007/2007‐2008 financial year and accordingly, may not be reflective of the situation that may prevail in 2011 when transition to IFRS set of standards will be applicable to Indian companies, as those entities may have altered their compensation contracts.Practical implicationsIndian firms will be required to prepare financial statements based on IFRS set of standards w.e.f. April 2011. IFRS 2, share‐based payments is not yet adopted in India. Overall, the significance of accounting changes associated with the adoption of IFRS 2 may not be very alarming for Indian companies with ESO schemes.Originality/valueThis study attempts to enrich empirical research in the field and provides an insight into the potential contractual and valuation implication of the adoption of one of the IFRS set of standards on Indian firms and also provides contrary evidence of the role of growth characteristics in explaining the impact of expense recognition.
Customer relationship management implementation
Authors: Akroush Mamoun N. , Dahiyat Samer E. , Gharaibeh Hesham S. , Abu‐Lail Bayan N. 
Published: July 2011

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the generalizability of the customer relationship management (CRM) scale originally developed by Sin et al. as well as to investigate the strength of linkages between CRM implementation components and business performance in Jordan's financial service organizations (FSOs).Design/methodology/approachUsing a quantitative methodology, data were collected through a survey that included FSOs that are operating in the Jordanian market. The original adopted CRM scale was administered to 12 banks and 18 insurance companies that were found to be implementing CRM. An overall number of 320 questionnaires were sent to these banks and insurance companies' top management members who were directly involved in CRM implementation and performance assessments. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were used to assess the generalizability of the CRM scale developed by Sin et al. Structural path model analysis was also used to test the research hypotheses concerning the relationship between CRM implementation and business performance.FindingsThe results suggest that the CRM implementation scale originally developed by Sin et al. does generalize to a Jordanian FSOs context. The findings indicate that there is a positive and significant relationship between CRM implementation components and FSOs' business performance comprised of financial and marketing performances. CRM organization and technology‐based CRM are the strongest predictors of variations in FSOs' business performance.Originality/valueThis paper is the first systematic research project in Jordan that isdevoted to investigating the scale and components of CRM implementation in Jordan and in the Middle East.
Consumer evaluations on brand extensions: B2B brands extended into B2C markets
Authors: Burnaz Sebnem , Bilgin Pinar 
Published: July 2011

PurposeThis paper aims to examine whether companies in business‐to‐business (B2B) markets can leverage their brands extended into business‐to‐consumer (B2C) markets and how consumers evaluate these extensions.Design/methodology/approachA model is developed by combining Aaker and Keller's brand extension model with theories from B2B branding as well as other consumer branding literature, and analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively to have an insight about how consumers evaluate brand extensions.FindingsIn the context of B2B brand extensions into B2C markets, consumers use brand concept consistency, product‐level relatedness and transferability of skills and resources as major cues to evaluate extensions. Perceived quality, innovativeness and environmental concerns are also relevant cues.Practical implicationsAs a consequence of these findings, branding strategies that stretch B2B brands into the domain of consumer markets can be successful in cases where consumers perceive a fit with respect to skills and resources, brand concept, and existing products, and when the parent brand is perceived as being high quality, innovative and environmentally responsible.Originality/valueThe main contribution of the study is to replicate the analysis of brand extension evaluation in a different context, namely B2B brand extension into the B2C market.
Consequences of consumer trust in PDO food products: the role of familiarity
Authors: Fandos Herrera Carmina , Flavián Blanco Carlos 
Published: July 2011

PurposeThis research proposes studying how the moderating role of consumers' familiarity with a food product with a protected denomination of origin (PDO) influences consumer behavior. Past research has ascertained that consumers confuse different brands and PDOs. For this reason, it is important to analyze whether the level of consumers' experience with PDO food products influences their decisions.Design/methodology/approachStructural equations and multi‐sample models were applied to measure the effect of familiarity on the relations between perceived risk, trust, satisfaction, loyalty and buying intention in a PDO food product. The consumer was asked to indicate his/her level of agreement or disagreement with a series of statements based on a seven‐point Likert scale. After the completion of the fieldwork, an analytic process (exploratory and confirmatory reliability analysis) was performed and 414 valid questionnaires were obtained.FindingsResults indicate that all the relationships proposed in the structural equation model between perceived risk, trust, satisfaction, loyalty and buying intention of the air‐cured ham “Jamón de Teruel” were accepted. Multi‐sample model results suggest that there are significant differences between consumers with high and low levels of familiarity in the influence of trust on satisfaction, as well as in the influence of satisfaction on loyalty. In consumers with greater familiarity and experience with the PDO, the effects of trust on satisfaction and satisfaction on loyalty are higher.Research limitations/implicationsAs a result of the study's findings with respect to the moderating role of greater familiarity with the PDO, managers should design marketing strategies to emphasize two main factors, intrinsic and extrinsic quality attributes, of PDO food products that make them unique.Originality/valueThe study emphasizes the importance of investigating the moderating effect of familiarity with a food product certified with a PDO and provides new insight into the necessity of consumers being able to differentiate the PDO from other brands in the food market.