bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Proposed changes to lease accounting
Authors: Knubley Rachel 
Published: August 2010

PurposeThe International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) is proposing a fundamental change to the way lease contracts are accounted for by both lessees and lessors. This article aims to summarise the proposed change.Design/methodology/approachThis article explains why the IASB decided to add a project on lease accounting to its agenda; outlines the proposed approach to lessee accounting; discusses how the proposals will affect lessors of real estate; and describes the next steps in the project.FindingsThe proposed changes described in this article will require lessees to recognise assets and liabilities in respect of operating leases on their balance sheet. This will affect lessees of real estate, because many property leases are currently classified as operating leases. The proposed changes will also have a significant effect on any lessor that carries investment property at cost rather than fair value.Originality/valueInterested parties have the opportunity to comment on the proposals summarised in this article when the IASB publishes an exposure draft of the proposed changes in the third quarter of this year.
Accounting for leases: telling it how it is
Authors: Lyon Julian 
Published: August 2010

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to express a viewpoint in respect of proposed changes to accounting for leases. It aims to present a summary of accounting principles and behaviours in the property leasing markets.Design/methodology/approachThe paper reflects analysis by the author conducted as part of an MBA project (which, in its entirety, dealt with the lease versus own decision) and is summarised as follows: in the definitions of SSAP 21, a lease is “a contract between a lessor and a lessee … ” and a distinction is drawn between an operating lease and a finance lease. The almost arbitrary treatment of leases has never been satisfactory but dealing with the shortcomings has proven awkward to the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB).FindingsThe value of reflecting leases on the balance sheet can be determined by close analysis of the work of Lasfer and other proponents of the advice that leasing real estate is better than owning it. The purpose of financial reporting is to show an accurate picture of the trading and health of the business in question. If significant parts of the picture are missing, perhaps it is not surprising that markets struggle to comprehend the true nature of assets and liabilities. Leasing is an activity whereby the use of an asset is separated from the ownership of that asset. The Accounting Standards Board, in its Statement of Principle, defines assets as “rights or other access to future economic benefits controlled by an entity as a result of past transactions or events”. Liabilities are defined as “obligations to transfer benefits as a result of past transactions or events”. Ownership of property would appear to fall into the category of asset; any borrowings against that asset would be categorised as a liability. A lease would appear to fall into both liability and asset categories.Originality/valueIt may not be comfortable for occupiers to adjust to the new accounting regime. It is, in the author's judgement, in the best interests of all stakeholders and, since it will require more active management, of the business itself.
Sale and leaseback programme in Barclays
Authors: Morris Sean 
Published: August 2010

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to review the context, rationale, execution strategies and results of the biggest property sale and leaseback programme Barclays has yet undertaken.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is a review and analysis of Barclays' project documentation plus report and accounts, interviews with key decisionmakers, analysis of external economic and property market data in order to set the strategy choices and results achieved into context.FindingsThe sale and leaseback programme released capital and supported business objectives at a material level for Barclays; it achieved sales values that were at cyclical highs; flexibility in execution allowed additional value to be delivered across changing market conditions; a mixed skills team was critical for success.Originality/valueThe paper documents why the sale and leaseback programme made sense for the organisation and what elements were key to success both as a strategy and through execution. It provides a case study for how a large organisation approached a recent and large‐scale sale and leaseback opportunity across a portfolio of 900‐1,000 properties.
Mobile payment applications: offer state of the art in the Italian market
Authors: Ghezzi Antonio , Renga Filippo , Balocco Raffaello , Pescetto Paolo 
Published: August 2010

PurposeThe purpose of the paper is to provide an initial study on the Italian mobile payment services market, and to identify and assess the main diffusion drivers of mobile payment applications.Design/methodology/approachThe research design integrates an exhaustive census of all Italian mPayment applications and an in‐depth analysis of the most significant cases performed through the case studies methodology: ten user companies or “merchants” and six service providers were analyzed through semi‐structured interviews given to top managers.FindingsThrough the census, 21 mPayment applications and related services were identified. In addition to this, the case studies brought greater understanding of the key diffusion drivers: strong inhibitory factors and adoption barriers are still restricting user adoption despite the many benefits related to these services.Research limitations/implicationsThe research represents a first, exploratory study of a market at its embryonic stage of development. Nevertheless, given the global magnitude of the Italian mobile telecommunications market and the gradual rise of the mPayment paradigm, the analysis can provide a valuable basis for future studies in the field.Practical implicationsThe findings can support a wide set of stakeholders – both first movers and newcomers of the mobile payment segment – in their offer definition and market making choices.Originality/valueThe paper combines a census and a case study methodology to delineate the offer's state of the art for innovative, mobile channel‐based payment services; moreover, its assessment of the applications' core benefits, diffusion drivers and adoption barriers can be tested for generalization to different contexts.
Personalisation and sociability of open knowledge management based on social tagging
Authors: Lee Baozhen , Ge Shilun 
Published: August 2010

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to analyse the personalised and social characteristics of open knowledge management in higher education based on social tagging in the Web 2.0 environment.Design/methodology/approachThrough the function of annotation in social tagging, the paper analyses its personalised characteristics of recognising the preferences of participants, and its personalised‐social characteristics of enriching content from all kinds of aspects; through the function of association of social tagging, it analyses its social characteristics of social networking, and its social‐personalised characteristics of collaborative acquisition or recommendation.FindingsIn the process of online information and open knowledge organisation and acquisition based on the annotation function of social tagging in the Web 2.0 environment, the personalised participation of individuals will lead to social results for everyone; however, in the process of online information and open knowledge creation and sharing based on the association function of social tagging, social and collaborative sharing among participants will help with personalised knowledge allocation.Originality/valueIn open knowledge management in higher education, the characteristics of personalisation and sociability based on social tagging will help to personalise the organisation and acquisition of knowledge, and help with social creation and sharing of knowledge.
Semantic representation for copyright metadata of user‐generated content in folksonomies
Authors: Kim Haklae , Breslin John , Hwa Choi Jae 
Published: August 2010

PurposeThe purpose of this research is to investigate some general features of folksonomies and user‐generated content with copyright issues, and to present semantic representation for folksonomies using a tag ontology that can be used to represent tagging data at a semantic level using Semantic Web technologies.Design/methodology/approachAn exploratory study is described that features current social tagging methods and copyright metadata. In particular, a tag ontology is extended for representing copyright metadata across different platforms.FindingsThe main finding is that Social Semantic Cloud of Tags can improve the expressive knowledge representation of folksonomies and that this ontology can aid in describing copyright metadata using some extended properties.Originality/valueThe paper gives a valuable insight into representing folksonomies with Semantic Web technologies that enable the representation, exchange, and reuse of tagging data, and provides a way to reduce the risk of copyright infringements in the process of tag sharing in folksonomies.
Assessment of two analytical methods in solving the linear and nonlinear elastic beam deformation problems
Authors: Barari A. , Ganjavi B. , Ghanbari Jeloudar M. , Domairry G. 
Published: August 2010

PurposeIn the last two decades with the rapid development of nonlinear science, there has appeared ever‐increasing interest of scientists and engineers in the analytical techniques for nonlinear problems. This paper considers linear and nonlinear systems that are not only regarded as general boundary value problems, but also are used as mathematical models in viscoelastic and inelastic flows. The purpose of this paper is to present the application of the homotopy‐perturbation method (HPM) and variational iteration method (VIM) to solve some boundary value problems in structural engineering and fluid mechanics.Design/methodology/approachTwo new but powerful analytical methods, namely, He's VIM and HPM, are introduced to solve some boundary value problems in structural engineering and fluid mechanics.FindingsAnalytical solutions often fit under classical perturbation methods. However, as with other analytical techniques, certain limitations restrict the wide application of perturbation methods, most important of which is the dependence of these methods on the existence of a small parameter in the equation. Disappointingly, the majority of nonlinear problems have no small parameter at all. Furthermore, the approximate solutions solved by the perturbation methods are valid, in most cases, only for the small values of the parameters. In the present study, two powerful analytical methods HPM and VIM have been employed to solve the linear and nonlinear elastic beam deformation problems. The results reveal that these new methods are very effective and simple and do not require a large computer memory and can also be used for solving linear and nonlinear boundary value problems.Originality/valueThe results revealed that the VIM and HPM are remarkably effective for solving boundary value problems. These methods are very promoting methods which can be wildly utilized for solving mathematical and engineering problems.
Integrated framework for satisfaction assessment in construction sector
Authors: Nzekwe‐Excel Chinny , Nwagboso Chris , Georgakis Panos , Proverbs David 
Published: August 2010

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to discuss assessment of the satisfaction levels of different members of a construction project team as a basis for meeting the needs of the client.Design/methodology/approachAn integrated framework is proposed that enables a collaboration of construction clients and project participants based on the recognition of the satisfaction requirements of every participant represented in the project team. The framework is developed to prioritise the satisfaction attributes of flexible number of construction clients and project participants, and enables the integration of these participants and their satisfaction attributes using mathematical and engineering techniques.FindingsThe framework can be applied at the different phases of the project life cycle. In addition, the satisfaction levels of construction clients and the project participants can be enhanced by focussing on the values of their satisfaction attributes and improving the integration of the project team.Practical implicationsThe paper shows that a collaboration of construction clients and project participants based on the recognition and acknowledgement of each participant and their requirements is essential to improving project satisfaction in the construction sector.Originality/valueThe framework captures and analyzes the level of integrated project team satisfaction. The outcome of the study will improve understanding the satisfaction requirements of every client and participant represented in a given construction project team.
An entertaining robot prototype for pets
Authors: Liu Yanfei , Zhao Jiaxin , Dimitrov Ves , Irish Amanda , Jones Chad , Kirk Sean , Thomas Joseph , Welter David 
Published: August 2010

PurposeRobots come in a variety of shapes and sizes, from manipulators in the industrial assembly line, to house cleaners, and to carebots of the elderly and sick. In recent years entertaining robots have been developed to engage adults and children into playing and learning. There are however no robots that have been specifically designed to entertain pets. The purpose of this paper is to present a prototype developed to engage pets into outdoor playing.Design/methodology/approachA prototype that can engage a dog or a cat into playing was designed, built, and tested by a group of senior students. The enclosure of the prototype has the shape of a round shell. Within this shell there is a sensor interfacing unit, which can interpret sounds generated by the animals, and a light and sound system designed to interact with the animals.FindingsThe testing results showed that the prototype was able to fulfill requirements for outdoor playing, such as being waterproof and able to travel through grass. Testing of the individual sensor interfacing circuits demonstrated the interactive capability. Dogs were chosen to be the subjects to be entertained. However, it is envisioned that a smaller version of this prototype can be suitable for cats.Originality/valueThis is the first prototype that explores ways to entertain pets when their human owners are absent or busy. The prototype developed is a good start for any intelligent robotic systems specifically designed to entertain pets.
Problem‐solving techniques of growing very small businesses
Authors: Perks S. 
Published: August 2010

PurposeThe paper aims to investigate the problems experienced and problem‐solving techniques of very small businesses during growth. Evidence shows that if managers can understand the potential for growth and the barriers in their own business path, they will be able to address the problems and achieve success. The purpose of the paper is therefore to provide guidelines to assist very small Black business entrepreneurs with overcoming growth problems, so to become sustainable.Design/methodology/approachA qualitative research approach with a combination of content analysis and grounded theory was used in the paper. The sample was restricted to very small Black business entrepreneurs in the formal sector, in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. Snowball sampling was used where the first participant identified supplied the names of other possible participants and so forth till the sample size of ten very small Black business entrepreneurs was obtained. One of the very small businesses had two owners, and another had three owners (total of 13 participants). The researcher collected the data through five rounds of mostly unstructured, non‐directive and in‐depth individual interviews on the Black entrepreneurs' premises (65 personal interviews in total). Observations and on‐site experiences were also noted. Utilising the constant comparative method, the problems could be divided into four main themes: solvable, partially solved, solved and ongoing problems and then further divided into seven management functions. The synchronic reliability method was used and the triangulation method was used to ensure validity. Coding of data also ensured both reliability and validity.FindingsProblems are mostly solved through experimental learning with human resource and financial problems as top priority training areas to assist growth. Many problems are computer related and some are personal such as stress management. Workshops or mentorship are indicated as possible ways of solving problems.Practical implicationsGeneral guidelines in five functional areas and in general were provided as to how problems could be solved to assist with growing these very small businesses. These guidelines are based on the experiences of the very small entrepreneur and to a lesser extent to what literature suggests. Suggestions were practically executable taking into consideration the time, money and staff constraints of very small business entrepreneurs.Originality/valueThe paper suggests guidelines and solutions for solving very small business growth problems.
The governance of fair trade social enterprises in Belgium
Authors: Huybrechts Benjamin 
Published: August 2010

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to address the governance of “fair trade social enterprises” (FTSEs), i.e. the organisations exclusively dedicated to the import, distribution and/or labelling of fairly traded products. The aims are to describe and categorise the types of persons and stakeholder groups represented in FTSEs' governance structures and to look at the link between stakeholder involvement and other organisational features such as resources, goals and activities.Design/methodology/approachThese questions are investigated through a qualitative field study based on face‐to‐face interviews with the managers of 15 Belgian FTSEs.FindingsThe paper distinguishes three governance models each entailing different governance paradigms: the managerial model, the volunteer‐based and the multi‐stakeholder models. In the three governance models, it is possible to link, to a certain extent, the composition of the governance structures, the access to resources and the goal priorities regarding the different dimensions of the FT activity. In brief, governance appears as an organisational entry revealing much information about the vision and the strategy of the FTSEs.Research limitations/implicationsThis paper is limited to Belgian FTSEs and must be considered as one of the first attempts in characterising the specific features and challenges of organisational governance in the FT context. International comparative studies exploring FTSE's governance in a more longitudinal perspective, combining the standpoints of diverse organisational actors, would be most welcome in the future.Originality/valueAs this paper shows, the multidimensional nature of FT and the coexistence of different types of FTSEs in the same country make this a very interesting field to investigate the challenges of governance in social enterprises. Social enterprises and those researching them should pay more attention to the importance of adopting and conceiving governance schemes that are adapted to their multiple missions and enable the access to multiple resources.
Complementary or alternative? The effects of corporate political strategy on innovation
Authors: Ozer Mine , Markóczy Lívia 
Published: August 2010

PurposeDrawing on the strategic choice and resource dependence perspectives, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between corporate political strategy and innovation in the manufacturing industry in the USA.Design/methodology/approachThe paper proposes two competing views on the relationship between corporate political strategy and innovation building on strategic choice and resource dependence perspectives.FindingsThe results show support for the resource dependence perspective, suggesting that corporate political strategy is complementary to innovation. The paper also tests for the moderating effects of firm characteristics such as firm size and financial resources, and industry characteristics such as industry concentration and growth on this relationship. The findings indicate that firms that invest heavily in innovation strategies may also want to consider investing in corporate political strategy to create favorable conditions for innovation.Originality/valueThe paper suggests that corporate political strategy can be viewed as alternative or complementary to innovation strategy. Firm characteristics such as firm size and financial resources, and industry characteristics such as industry concentration and growth, moderate the relationship between corporate political strategy and innovation.
Creating a world class business through a merger of two equals
Authors: O'Regan Nicholas , Ghobadian Abby 
Published: August 2010

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore, from a practical point‐of‐view, a number of key strategic issues that critically influence organisations' competitiveness.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is based on a semi‐structured interview with Mr Paul Walsh, CEO of Diageo. Diageo is a highly successful company and Mr Walsh has played a central role in making Diageo the number one branded drink company in the world.FindingsThe paper discusses the key attributes of successful merger, lessons from a complex cross boarder acquisition, rationale for strategic alliance with competitors, distinctive resources, and the role of corporate social responsibility.Research limitations/implicationsIt is not too often that management scholars have the opportunity to discuss with the CEOs of large multinationals the rational of key strategic decisions. In this paper these issues are explored from the perspective of a CEO of a large and successful company. The lessons, while not generalisable, offer unique insights to students of management and management researchers.Originality/valueThe paper offers a bridge between theory and practice. It demonstrates that from Diageo's perspective the distinctive capabilities are intangible. It also offers insight into how to successfully execute strategic decision. In terms of originality it offers a view from the top, which is often missing from strategy research.