bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Contextual factors affecting the deployment of innovative performance measurement systems
Authors: Gosselin Maurice 
Published: December 2011

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the association between strategy, structure and environmental uncertainty, and the design and the use of performance measurements systems. The paper provides empirical evidence on the contextual factors associated with the use of financial and non‐financial measures, process and outcome measures and the deployment of innovative performance measurement systems in manufacturing business units.Design/methodology/approachA questionnaire was sent to a random sample of 200 Canadian manufacturing organizations. Respondents were asked to indicate to which extent they use different measures. They also had to mention if they had adopted an innovative performance measurement approach such as the balanced scorecard. The questionnaire also included questions to classify organizations as prospectors, defenders or analyzers and to measure the levels of decentralization and perceived environmental uncertainty.FindingsThe results show that there is a significant association between strategy, organizational structure and environmental uncertainty and the use of non‐financial and process measures. They also indicate that there is an association between strategy and environmental uncertainty and the deployment of innovative performance measurement systems.Practical implicationsSince the 1990s, performance measurement has become an important issue for both academics and practitioners. The professional literature has suggested that managers should design innovative performance measurement systems such as balanced scorecards that include financial and non‐financial measures and also process and outcome measures. This paper provides a better understanding of the factors that affect the implementation of innovative performance measurement systems.Originality/valueThe paper presents one of the few studies that provide a better understanding of the contingent factors that influence the design and the use of innovative performance measurement systems.
Developing a university classification model from performance indicators
Authors: Phusavat Kongkiti , Ketsarapong Suphattra , Ranjan Jayanthi , Lin Binshan 
Published: December 2011

PurposeThis paper aims to improve the Commission of Higher Education (CHE)'s current university classification and develop the Thai Higher Education Classification Model (THEC‐model). This study supports the CHE's initiative to ensure that the future is more science‐oriented by encouraging universities to become National Research Universities (NRUs).Design/methodology/approachThe research applies empirical data and a statistical approach for the THEC‐model's development. The model's results are then compared with the decisions reached earlier by the CHE in selecting public universities as research‐intensive.FindingsThe proposed classification criteria for NRUs consist of: research funding; the variety of instructional programmes; the level of instructional programmes; instructors and research staff body; and student body, which have significantly statistically influenced the differences in Y‐variables: research output, citation, and research awards at alpha 0.05. The initial results show that eight universities are selected. The findings are consistent with the 2008 announcement, except for two universities.Practical implicationsThe developed THEC‐model benefits academic researchers, university administrators, and policymakers for many reasons. For example, the THEC‐model provides information for academic researchers to determine the important variables for a research university. The model provides information for policymakers to manage higher education effectively to raise the targets for a university.Originality/valueThe THEC‐model criteria were generated by reviewing the classification system in different locations. Such criteria could be applied extensively at domestic and international level. Moreover, the developed THEC‐model is based on a statistical approach and empirical data improved the reliability and would be beneficial to the CHEs in Thailand for further improvement on research‐focused HEI classification criteria in the future.
Revisiting digital libraries quality: a multiple‐item scale approach
Authors: Helena Vinagre Maria , Gaspar Pinto Leonor , Ochôa Paula 
Published: December 2011

PurposeThis paper aims to deepen the concept of service quality in digital libraries based on the analysis of the Digital Library Service Quality Model (adapted from Zeithaml, Parasuraman and Malhotra) and a multiple‐item scale (dlQUAL scale) created to evaluate the quality and performance of service delivered by the Portuguese Digital Library Consortium as part of the Digital Library Integrated Evaluation Programme.Design/methodology/approachThe Digital Library Service Quality Model makes it possible to assess gaps between different levels based on a multiple‐item scale to evaluate service quality, which was designed as a web survey. Considering the strategical groups (users, LIS professionals, library managers and top managers), the research team developed four different web‐survey versions to evaluate the different gaps. In the first step of this study, they looked for measures validity.FindingsThe scale proved good psychometric proprieties. This study also showed the usefulness of the Digital Library Service Quality Model to evaluate and analyze digital libraries' service quality.Practical implicationsThe scale is valid and useful to evaluate digital libraries' service quality and it can provide valuable performance information to digital libraries' decision‐makers. Moreover, the Digital Library Service Quality Model is a useful instrument to check the critical points that are related to organizational deficiencies. If these gaps are regularly monitored, it is possible to implement adequate correction measures and improve service quality.Originality/valueThis paper presents a Library Service Quality Model specifically designed to evaluate digital libraries.
When more can be less: the perceived value of additional FDI in the same host country
Authors: Hutzschenreuter Thomas , Kleindienst Ingo , von Bieberstein Boris 
Published: December 2011

PurposeThe aim of this paper is to explore whether and how the depth of a company's operations in a given host country influences how shareholders value further investments in that country. Here, depth means the extent of a company's presence, that is, a company's accumulated foreign direct investment (FDI) in a given country prior to the focal investment.Design/methodology/approachThis paper develops a theoretical framework postulating that the value of an additional FDI in a given host country decreases to the extent to which it is redundant to a company's accumulated FDI in that country prior to the focal investment. Hypotheses are advanced and tested using a sample that encompasses the FDIs of 91 German MNEs over a 20‐year period from 1985 to 2004.FindingsThe empirical analysis shows that there is a negative relationship between depth of operations in a host country prior to the focal investment and the value that shareholders put on that investment. It is also found that the negative relationship is moderated by characteristics of the focal investment, as well as by characteristics of the country in which the additional investment is made.Research limitations/implicationsThe theoretical framework developed in this study provides a starting‐point for further research on the valuation effect of individual FDIs. This study focuses on cross‐border acquisitions mainly because the value effect of such FDI can be calculated using an event study approach. However, it is believed that testing this study's theoretical framework using other forms of FDI would yield interesting results.Originality/valueThis is among the few studies that investigate how a company's path of FDI in a given host country affects the value of additional FDI in that country.
Summary and analysis of Dodd‐Frank rules for investment advisers: registration requirements, exemptions, family offices, performance fee eligibility
Authors: Sorady Marybeth , Domina Daren , Cohen Wendy , Santo Fred , Bregstein Henry , Wiener Meryl , Okoshi Marilyn , Governale Jack P. 
Published: December 2011

PurposeThis paper aims to explain the rules recently adopted by the Securities and Exchange Commission under the provisions of the Dodd‐Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act relating to the increased asset threshold for federal registration as an investment adviser, the new exemptions from investment adviser registration (including the exclusion of “family offices” from the definition of an investment adviser), the enhanced reporting obligations imposed on registered and certain exempt advisers, and the definition of a “qualified client” for purposes of applying the performance fee rule under the Investment Advisers Act.Design/methodology/approachThis paper summarizes the principal content of the Rules and explains their application to investment advisers, focusing in particular on analyzing the impact of the Rules on US and non‐US advisers to private funds.FindingsThe Rules clarify important aspects of the Dodd‐Frank amendments to the Investment Advisers Act and expand the scope of certain registration exemptions as they relate to foreign advisers. The Rules also expand significantly the family office exclusion from investment adviser status.Originality/valueThe paper provides expert guidance from experienced financial services lawyers.
Pay‐to‐play: SEC staff provides new guidance on Advisers Act Rule 206(4)‐5
Authors: Pittman Edward L. , Harvey Christopher P. , Sherman Michael L. , Carroll Brenden P. 
Published: December 2011

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explain the SEC staff's web site responses to a series of frequently asked questions concerning SEC Advisers Act Rule 206(4)‐5.Design/methodology/approachThe paper explains the SEC staff responses to FAQs on the ability to rely on prior Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board interpretations regarding MSRB Rules G‐37 and G‐38, determining who is an “official of a government entity,” determining who is a “covered associate,” payments of commissions or other compensation to brokers or others, the Rules' application to political action committees (PACs), and “effective dates” and “compliance dates” under the related recordkeeping rule.FindingsPay‐to‐play is the practice of making campaign contributions and related payments to elected officials in order to influence the awarding of lucrative contracts for the management of public pension plan assets and similar government investment accounts. The staff's answers to the FAQs announce cautious positions, do not address some of the more difficult issues advisers may face on a day‐to‐day basis, and are subject to change.Originality/valueThe paper provides practical guidance from experienced financial services lawyers.
Recent regulatory actions focused on policies and procedures designed to safeguard material, non‐public information
Authors: Lane Jason 
Published: December 2011

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to review recent regulatory enforcement actions sanctioning firms for failure to safeguard material, non‐public information (MNPI).Design/methodology/approachThe paper reviews recent enforcement actions and examines the implications for other firms who may face similar scrutiny from regulators for deficient policies and procedures and controls relating to their information barriers; makes recommendations on how firms can avoid similar mistakes through improving internal controls.FindingsFirms need to be especially vigilant in protecting their MNPI by reviewing their policies and procedures to reflect the firm's current business model. Firms must also take steps to ensure that supervisors fully understand their role in implementing and enforcing the firm's policies and procedures.Practical implicationsFirms should conduct a comprehensive review of their business to understand which units come into possession of MNPI and how related entities interact with one another and could potentially share MNPI. Once these tasks are complete, firms will be better positioned to review their policies and procedures relating to safeguarding MNPI. Failure to do so may result in substantial monetary fines and being forced to retain an independent consultant.Originality/valueThe paper serves as a reminder to firms about the implications of failing to have adequate controls to safeguard MNPI from both a monetary and public relations standpoint.
Selected FINRA notices and disciplinary actions, July‐August 2011
Authors: Davis Henry A. 
Published: December 2011

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to provide selected Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) regulatory notices and disciplinary actions issued in July and August 2011.Design/methodology/approachThe paper provides Regulatory Notice 11‐31, July 2011, Credit Default Swaps: Interim Pilot Program on Margin Requirements for Credit Default Swaps; Notice 11‐37, July 2011, Trading Halts Due To Extraordinary Market Volatility: Trading Pause Rule Expanded to All NMS Stocks; Notice 11‐38, August 2011, Application of the SEC's Financial Responsibility Rules in Response to the Downgrade of US Long‐term Credit Rating by Standard & Poor's; Notice 11‐39, August 2011, Social Media Websites and the Use of Personal Devices for Business Communications: Guidance on Social Networking Websites and Business Communications; and selected FINRA disciplinary actions in July and August 2011.FindingsNotice 11‐31: FINRA has extended the implementation of Rule 4240 so that it will expire on January 17, 2012; the Rule established an interim pilot program with respect to margin requirements for certain transactions in credit default swaps. Notice 11‐37: Beginning August 8, 2011, the trading pause pilot rule – currently applicable only to securities included in the S&P 500® Index, the Russell 1000® Index and a list of selected exchange‐traded products (ETPs) – will be expanded to include all National Market System (NMS) stocks. Notice 11‐38: FINRA staff has confirmed with the staff of the SEC that this ratings action by Standard & Poor's does not alter the net capital treatment of these government securities under SEA Rule 15c3‐1(c)(2)(vi)(A) and does not affect the definition of “qualified security” under SEA Rule 15c3‐3(a)(6). Notice 11‐39: Responds to questions regarding the application of Regulatory Notice 10‐06, January 2010, providing guidance on the application of FINRA rules governing communications with the public to social media sites and reminding firms of the recordkeeping, suitability, supervision and content requirements for such communications.Originality/valueThese are direct excerpts designed to provide a useful digest for the reader and an indication of regulatory trends.
Fit manufacturing: a framework for sustainability
Authors: Pham Duc T. , Thomas Andrew J. 
Published: December 2011

PurposeWith the current global downturn, companies must develop new and innovative approaches to ensure that economic sustainability is achieved. The purpose of this paper is to propose a Fit Manufacturing Framework (FMF), the adoption of which can help manufacturing companies to become economically sustainable and operate effectively in a global competitive market. This contribution extends the previous work by the authors and provides an evolution on the initial work through enhancing the development of Fit manufacture through developing a more robust framework and a more comprehensive functional testing of the framework.Design/methodology/approachThe proposed FMF provides a new manufacturing management perspective and a new manufacturing management strategy for creating economically sustainable manufacturing organisations. It builds upon the principles of existing manufacturing paradigms, along with innovative management concepts, to set up the conditions necessary for sustainability. A pilot application of the framework in three SMEs shows positive initial results when assessed against four Measures of Performance.FindingsManufacturing strategies such as Lean and Agility allow companies to deliver bottom‐line savings in production terms, although their effectiveness depends upon the volume and demand profile of their products. The trend towards mass customisation requires companies to provide personalised products and services at mass production prices. This now places a further burden on companies and therefore a holistic manufacturing framework must be developed in order to ensure that the factory of the future is able to meet this new demand. This paper proposes a Fit manufacturing paradigm which integrates the manufacturing efficiencies achieved through Lean and Agility with the need to break into new markets through effective marketing and product innovation strategies to achieve long term economic sustainability. The small‐scale application of the approach in a case company shows the initial results to be positive when measured against key MOPs developed within this paper.Originality/valueThe development of a Fit paradigm aimed at tackling directly the issues of economic sustainability is proposed and is considered by the authors as one of a kind. Fit will also provide a framework for the implementation of sustainable manufacturing operations within organisations.
An assembly strategy scheduling method for human and robot coordinated cell manufacturing
Authors: Chen Fei , Sekiyama Kosuke , Huang Jian , Sun Baiqing , Sasaki Hironobu , Fukuda Toshio 
Published: December 2011

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to propose a model of assembly strategy generation and selection for human and robot coordinated (HRC) cell assembly. High‐Mix, Low‐Volume production in small production manufacturing industry, tends to employ more flexible assembly cells. The authors propose innovative human and robot coordinated assembly cells to solve the problem of persistent growing cost for human resources and occasional changes in programs and configurations for robots. The first issue is to find out an optimal way to allocate the assembly subtasks to both humans and robots.Design/methodology/approachA dual Generalized Stochastic Petri Net (GSPN) model is theoretically studied and then off line built based on a practical assembly task for human and robot coordination. Based on GSPN, Monte Carlo method is carried out to study the time cost and payment cost or possible strategies, and Multiple‐Objective Optimization (MOOP) method related Cost‐effectiveness analysis is adopted to select the optimal ones.FindingsIt is discovered that human and robot coordinated assembly can reduce the assembly time and meanwhile reduce the assembly cost. The authors demonstrate the effectiveness of this approach by comparing the simulation and experimental results.Originality/valueThe novelty with this work is that the human and robot coordinated flexible assembly cell, as the authors proved, is the main stream in small production in future due to the higher human source pressure from society and cost pressure upon the company. Based on this innovative work, the authors proposed a dual GSPN model to model the assembly task allocation process for human and robot, the model of which is also effective in modeling the possible robot and human behaviors.
Evolutionary clustering algorithm based on mixed measures
Authors: Ma Jingjing , Gong Maoguo , Jiao Licheng 
Published: December 2011

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present an evolutionary clustering algorithm based on mixed measure for complex distributed data.Design/methodology/approachIn this method, the data are first partitioned into some spherical distributed sub‐clusters by using the Euclidean distance as the similarity measurement, and each clustering center represents all the members of corresponding cluster. Then, the clustering centers obtained in the first phase are clustered by using a novel manifold distance as the similarity measurement. The two clustering processes in this method are both based on evolutionary algorithm.FindingsTheoretical analysis and experimental results on seven artificial data sets and seven UCI data sets with different structures show that the novel algorithm has the ability to identify clusters efficiently with no matter simple or complex, convex or non‐convex distribution. When compared with the genetic algorithm‐based clustering and the K‐means algorithm, the proposed algorithm outperformed the compared algorithms on most of the test data sets.Originality/valueThe method presented in this paper represents a new approach to solving clustering problems of complex distributed data. The novel method applies the idea “coarse clustering, fine clustering”, which executes coarse clustering by Euclidean distance and fine clustering by manifold distance as similarity measurements, respectively. The proposed clustering algorithm is shown to be effective in solving data clustering problems with different distribution.
Videodermoscopic pattern analysis of acral melanocytic nevi
Authors: KOKGIL Tuba D. , EKMEKCI Tugba R. , YASAR Sirin 
Published: December 2011

AbstractThree major and three minor types of acral melanocytic lesions have been described: parallel furrow, lattice‐like, fibrillar, reticular, homogeneous and globular. To examine the dermoscopic patterns of acral melanocytic lesions and to investigate the association of these patterns with clinical features. This study included 419 acral melanocytic lesions of 295 patients. Dermoscopic images were stored in a standardized digital system and assessed. The incidence rates of the patterns were as follows: parallel furrow (62.5%), reticular (12.2%), globular (7.6%), fibrillar (5.0%), lattice‐like (4.3%), homogeneous (3.8%), non‐typical (3.8%), globulostreak‐like (0.5%) and parallel ridge (0.2%). There was a significant association between pattern and diameter; nevi showing globular pattern were significantly smaller than those showing lattice‐like pattern. There was a significant correlation between pattern and localization. The fibrillar pattern was observed more commonly on the feet, and the lattice‐like pattern was seen almost entirely on the hands. Homogeneous and globular patterns were proportionately more common on the feet than on the hands. A significant association was found between patterns and colors. Compared with the lattice‐like pattern, parallel furrow, fibrillar and homogeneous patterns were lighter in color; the globular pattern was darker than the homogeneous pattern. There was no significant correlations between pattern and clinical presentation. In conclusion, unlike all other studies, in the present study, the two most common patterns following the parallel furrow pattern were reticular and globular, which are minor patterns. Besides the differences in pattern distribution and inherent variability in individual assessment, the age of the study group and location of nevi influence the pattern, possibly in association with race.