03-11

Problem Identification, Encouragement Activities and Quality Improvement – The Israeli Experience

Daniel Galin of Jerusalem Academic Center and Gideon Falk

11-08

The contribution of problem identification activities to quality improvement programs and the methods to encourage employees to report identified problems is seldom discussed in the literature of quality improvement. In addition, there are not many empirical studies of the subject. The model presented in this study enables the investigation of (a) the effect of organizational and QA system characteristics as well as quality improvement budgeting on encouragement practices for problem identification by employees, (b) the effects of encouragement activities on the intensity of problem identification activities by employees and (c) a comparison of the contribution of  various sources of problem identification, namely employees, engineers, quality assurance department members and customers, to quality improvement programs.  The data for this study is based on 222 questionnaires on quality improvement activities and achievements in Israel, where all the respondents were involved in quality issues of their organizations in one way or another. The study results give insight into the mechanism of problem identification activities, the effects of the various factors that activate the processes at the work place and the relative contribution of the various sources of problem identification to quality improvement programs.

02-11

Validating a Globalized Curriculum: Who Says You Get a Passing Grade?

Michael L. Mick

11-08

Information System (IS) professionals must be prepared for employment in a globalized environment. Consequently, IS curricula must adjust to address this concern as students prepare for their careers. We need to validate that curricula meet this need. Accreditation is the means by which a program publically can be identified as meeting an agreed upon standard for excellence. The two major accrediting bodies for IS/CIS/MIS programs are ABET and AACSB. These bodies are addressing the need for programs to be globally aware, albeit as a work in progress, where the two bodies are at different places in pursuing this common goal.

01-11

Comparative Study of Educational Systems and the Relationship to Student Success

Kasia Firlej and Angela Crossin

11-08

One of the most significant elements of American history is the role that visitors have played in defining the American experience – in particular, the educational experience.  American education is a complex subject.  The United States does not have a national school system.  However, the government does provide, among others things, guidance and funding for educational programs.  In recent years, standards have changed with regard to required course curriculum.

It is against this backdrop that the authors have decided to explore the differences between educational systems abroad, and the United States educational system – in particular, Purdue University Calumet.  What is unique to the campus of Purdue University Calumet is the high number of  “first generation” students.  As defined by Purdue University Calumet’s Chancellor, Howard Cohen, a first generation student is,  “One for whom neither parent has a college degree.”Chancellor Cohen speaks from experience, as he was a first generation student himself.According to Chancellor Cohen, the Northwest Indiana region, “depends on more college graduates to lift the economy.” However, in light of that fact, only -__% of students entering Purdue Calumet matriculate. 

This paper will attempt to compare and contrast the success rates of foreign students to Purdue University Calumet students.  First, it will provide a conceptual framework for distinguishing among, defining, and relating relevant factors.  Second, it will identify trends and policy concerns regarding the quality of education that the target students are receiving.  Third, it provides empirical evidence on various factors (parental educational background, socio-economics, academic advisor accessibility, current and future retention programs, etc.). 

08-01

Institutional Holding Effect on Firm's Market Value

Naser Khaledi

4-08

International Journal of Business, Accounting, and Finance, Vol. 2, No. 2.

2007

This paper examines whether Institutional Holdings (IH) have incremental effect on firm’s value. To test this relationship, Ohlson (1995) model is used to test the association between IH and firm’s market value while controlling for book value and earnings of the firm. The sample consists of financial data from Compustat and IH data from CD Compact Disclosure for the years 2000-2002. This study employs multiple regression model methodology to test whether participants in the stock market value the presence of IH in the firm. This study reports that IH have a positive significant relationship with the market value of the firm. This implies that investors pay a premium for IH presence. This paper contributes to the literature by testing the incremental information content of IH on firm’s market value allowing investors to integrate these findings in their decision making.

07-08

An Examination of Implied Options and Intraday Volatilities in Pre Event Time

Pat Obi

9-07

This study investigates the duration and depth of investor sentiments based on anomalies in implied options and intraday volatilities. Implied volatility is known to convey investor sentiments by its tendency to rise in advance of a market downturn. Because the airline industry was particularly distressed by the 2001 terror attacks in the United States, the magnitude of its pre-event volatility patterns is compared to that of the rest of the market. Empirical results show that pre-event abnormal returns for airlines is negative and is, in general, larger than that of the market as a whole. More importantly, there was a remarkable increase in pre-event implied volatility, which provided short position holders with profitable trading opportunities. In the price-risk relationship, Granger causality results are mixed, showing in particular that a bi-directional causality exists between implied volatility and equity market valuation.

07-07

Management Commitment and its Impact on Quality Improvement Processes: The Israeli Case

Daniel Galin of Rupin Academic Center and Gideon Falk

5-07

Most management scholars and quality assurance professionals agree that management commitment to quality improvement processes is critical. Various studies have been published, but no common model for the effects of such commitment has emerged. This empirical study focuses on how management commitment affects quality improvement processes in the Israeli environment. In this inquiry we assumed a chain of activities that improve quality where chain components have multiple links. Other models share with this study an independent variable of management commitment and dependent variables representing quality practices and their outcomes. The model presented adds the following: (a) the effects of organizational characteristics, (b) the impact of budgeting and employee encouragement activities, and (c) evidence that management commitment plays a more central role in activating quality improvement systems than others have found. The results provide a basis for an international joint investigation into the mechanisms that motivate quality improvement processes.

07-06

Outsourcing Data Security and Privacy Issues in India

Nipul Patel of Purdue University North Central and Susan E. Conners

4-07

This paper presents research on how India addresses its market for customer relationship outsourcing. The research examines how India compares to western security standards and what steps are being taken to address security concerns. The data security legislation in the United States, United Kingdom and India are reviewed and their impact on It outsourcing.

07-05

Human Resource Management and Intellectual Capital: The Case of Knowledge Workers

Casimir C. Barczyk and Rebecca Stankowski,

3-07

Human capital, as a component of an organization’s intellectual capital, is addressed as the case is made that knowledge workers are hired and retained by companies in a special way. Knowledge has been growing at an exponential rate for many years, and companies are realizing that the effective management of this knowledge will have direct bearing on the continued future success of the enterprise. In the last ten years, Knowledge Management (KM) has emerged as a process of transforming information into usable knowledge then disseminating it throughout the organization for the purpose of creating a competitive advantage. Since the major source of knowledge-based resources in an organization lies in its employees, knowledge management focuses on people. Given that human resource management (HRM) also focuses on people, it plays a significant role in developing, establishing, and sustaining knowledge management practices in organizations.

07-04

Portfolio Optimization with Spreadsheet Modeling: A Pedagogical Approach

C. Pat Obi and Raida Abuizam,

3-07

This paper presents a pedagogical approach for constructing optimal portfolios on spreadsheet. First, a review of modern portfolio theory is presented in which the reduction of unsystematic risk is the prime motive for investing in a diversified portfolio. Three factors impacting overall portfolio risk are individual asset variances, asset covariances, and asset weights. Of these three, only the choice of asset weight is at the discretion of the investor. By varying the weights, one can observe how the expected performance of a portfolio changes even though the asset composition is unchanged. The spreadsheet analysis begins with a simple illustration of the attainable set and the efficient frontier. Finally, an illustration of portfolio optimization is presented using the solver tool on spreadsheet. The approach described in this paper should be particularly helpful in teaching portfolio management at both the graduate and undergraduate levels. It should also serve as an intuitive method for teaching the concept of risk and return in an MBA-level course in corporate finance.

07-03

Put a Leader on that Horse (Association)

LaVon Green, Susan E. Conners, Sherry Green and Michael Mick

3-07

Journal of the International Academy for Case Studies

2007

The subject matter of this case involves the strategic direction of a not-for-profit equine breed association. Additional issues are organization structure, leadership, and financial stability. The case is designed for one class session and will require about two hours outside preparation. The Arabian Horse Association is responsible for the breed registry, membership, marketing and promotion, and member programs for Arabian and Half-Arabian horses in the United States. The growth of the organization resulted in poor financial planning and no long term strategic plan to guide the organization.

07-02

User -Centered Design for Global Information Systems

Susan E. Conners and Roy O. Foreman

3-07

Issues in Information Systems

2007

User-centered design is rapidly becoming a necessary component of business systems. As users become more sophisticated, they expect usability to be a key component of information systems. Global information systems have more challenges to create systems with user-centered design principles as they must account for different languages and cultures. This study identifies key user-centered design principles and then measures the websites of twenty Fortune 500 companies with an international presence against these principles.

07-01

The Impact of Information Technology on Productive Efficiency: An International Comparison

Winston T. Lin from The State University of New York at Buffalo and Page P. Tsai

3-07

The value of Information Technology (IT) in a business production process has long been a debatable and controversial issue that has been examined by numerous researchers during the past two decades. Explanation of the so-called “productivity paradox” has been one of the central topics in this arena. Much ink has been spent on firm level analyses, however, only few attempts have so far been made by scholars to show the IT value at the country level. Based on production theory in microeconomics, this paper is intended as an investigation of examining IT contribution from a different angle, that is, a country-level analysis, as well as exploring the IT value within and between two country groups, one group consisting of eight developed countries (G7 countries plus Australia) and the other being formed by seven developing (emerging) countries, using the economic measure called productive efficiency as the performance criterion. Empirical results are obtained by applying stochastic production frontiers to a comprehensive country-level panel data set, where the stochastic production frontiers considered are Cobb-Douglas, Box-Cox, Box-Tidwell, and translog functions. Empirical evidence strongly suggests that the IT contributions, as determined by the increase or decrease in the productive efficiency, to individual countries differ from a production frontier to another. IT spendings do not necessarily improve on productive efficiencies of individual countries no matter whether they are developed or developing and, given technological changes, the productivity paradox may exist in a country regardless of whether it is a developed or developing one. Finally, significant implications derived from the empirical results are also presented.

06-13

Corporate Governance and Firm Performance: Fixed Effects and Simultaneity Issues

Amlan Mitra

12-06

This study examines whether differences in the quality of firm level corporate governance characteristics help to explain firm performance in major U.S. firms. Using several corporate governance variables, the relationship between firm valuation and corporate governance are examined. Two measures of firm valuation, Tobin’s Q and stock return are used. Results do not find any conclusive evidence of a positive significant relationship between firm performance and corporate governance when unobserved firm-specific corporate governance characteristics are controlled.

06-12

A Survey of Professor Reactions to Scenarios of Academic Dishonesty in American Universities

James Frost of Idaho State University, Informatics Research Institute and Alan Hamlin of Southern Utah University, College of Business, Management and Casimir C. Barczyk

12-06

Journal of Business Inquiry: Research, Education, &
Application: Mountain Plains Conference Special Edition. Vol. 6, Issue 1, 2007
p. 11-18.

2007

This study investigates the opinions of faculty members on the subject of academic integrity at two state universities in the western United States. Results show strong similarities for both universities. Most faculty members are lenient to first offenders and would counsel students after plagiarism is discovered. However, as a group they do little to promote student awareness on what constitutes academic dishonesty. Further, although most faculty members are more stringent in their reactions to second time offenders, most admit there is no tracking of such activities in their departments or schools. The faculties believe that student academic integrity is a problem at both schools.

06-11

Destination Marketing in China: A Case Study of Nine Dragon Theme Park

Jindong Zhang at Tourism Bureau of Dongcheng District, Beijing, China and Kuan-Chow Chen and Keh-Wen “Carin” Chuang of Purdue University North Central and Denise M. Woods

12-06

Journal of the International Academy for Case Studies

accepted

The primary subject matter of this case concerns the destination marketing strategies used for a Chinese amusement theme park. The case follows the theme park from its inception and discovers how the changing tourism environment in China affected the success of the theme park.

06-10

Expertise of Owners, Investment of Time, and Human Resource Outsourcing in Very Small Businesses

Casimir C. Barczyk and Jamaluddin H. Husain and Sherry L. Green

12-06

Journal of Business Inquiry: Research, Education, &
Application: Mountain Plains Conference Special Edition. Vol. 6, Issue 1, 2007
p. 39-50.

2007

Very small enterprises (VSEs) are firms in the product and service sectors of the economy that are not part of a larger company and have 10 or less employees. The manner in which they practice human resource management is analyzed. Four questions are explored including the extent to which 17 HRM activities are performed in-house or outsourced by VSEs. Next, the perceptions of VSE owners’ expertise in HRM are analyzed. How VSE owners obtain their knowledge of HRM and the percentage of their time invested in HR activities and decision making are also addressed.

06-09

Determinants of Firms Managing EPS through Share Repurchases

Naser Khaledi

10-06

Academy of Accounting and Financial Studies Journal

This paper examines the determinants of firms that are able to manage earning per share (EPS) through share repurchases vs. firms that are not able to manage EPS through share repurchases. To run the test, I utilize Univariate analysis based on the relation between cost of debt capital (CODC) and cost of equity (E/P ratio). Prior research reports that firms with higher (lower) cost of equity are (not) able to manage EPS through share repurchases (Khaledi and Balsam, 2003). I identify determinants of repurchasing firms based on firms’ ability to manage EPS upward. Prior research identifies motivations of share repurchasing firms (Dittmar, 2000). However, Khaledi and Balsam (2003) partition their sample based on the relationship between the cost of debt capital (CODC) and earnings-price ratio (E/P) to examine whether firms are able to manage EPS through share repurchases. I report that managing firms have higher leverage, are larger, and have higher E/P ratio. Non-managing firms repurchase more shares, have higher value of share repurchases, have higher market-to-book value, and pay higher interest rate.

06-08

The Dynamic Effects of Aggregate Demand and Aggregate Supply Disturbances in the G-7 Countries

10-06

This paper examines the relative importance of the dynamic effects of aggregate demand, aggregate supply and money supply shocks in the G-7 countries from 1960 to end of 2004. The framework for the analysis is the structural vector autoreggression model (SVR), in which long restrictions are imposed to identify these dynamics effects. Results indicate that in all G-7 countries shocks in aggregate demand, aggregate supply and money growth are mainly responsible for fluctuations. In particular, shocks in the nominal money supply and aggregate demand have an unambiguous effect on output. Shocks in the money growth is the main factor in explaining price variability.

06-07

Comparing Monetary and Fiscal Policy Transmission Across the Americas and the EMU Area

09-06

This paper estimates structural VAR models to compare the transmission mechanism of monetary and fiscal policy in the Americas and the EMU–area countries. First, the NAFTA countries are considered and the estimation results are compared with those for the EMU-area countries. Attention is also paid to interaction of macroeconomic policies and the effects of shocks in financial markets. Results show that the Americas except for the U.S. and Canada, react rather differently to monetary and fiscal policy shocks than the EMU-area countries.

06-06

Role of Flexible Functional Form in Estimating Local Government Structure: A Case Study

Amlan Mitra

09-06

The purpose of this paper is to explore the nature of the functional form of the estimating model of the local government structure. Past studies examining the relationship between local government structure and population characteristics assumed a specific functional form of the estimating equation. Since there is no clear theoretical expectation regarding the most appropriate functional form, this paper conducts a series of specification tests on the general functional form of the estimating function to derive the optimal functional form. The specification tests were conducted using pooled cross-sectional data from a sample of 95 metropolitan areas in United States. Results indicate that there are strong linear trends of the effect of population heterogeneity variables on the number of special districts but strong non-linear trends for other types of local governments.

06-05

The Impact of Distance Learning on Graduation Rates for Information Systems Students

Susan Conners and
Michael Mick

09-06

International Journal of Information and Communication Technology Education

accepted

The study examines a ten-year history of undergraduate students majoring in Information Systems at a Midwestern public university. The results are useful to faculty and administrators interested in evaluating distance learning's role in graduation rates. The research investigates whether students that have taken various amounts of distance learning courses persist to graduation. In addition, the analysis looks at the role of gender in those students who graduated. The findings clearly indicate that students taking distance learning courses persist to graduation and that there is a relationship between gender and the amount of distance learning courses taken to persist to graduation.

06-04

Managing EPS through Share Repurchases

Naser Khaledi and Steven Balsom of Temple University

09-06

This study investigates whether firms manage EPS through share repurchases. Firms that repurchase their shares will have fewer outstanding shares, the denominator in the Earnings per Share (EPS) calculation, which under certain circumstances can result in higher EPS post share repurchases. To better isolate these circumstances, we extend recent studies by Myers and Skinner (2002) and Bens et al. (2003) by incorporating the opportunity cost of cash available for the firms. We argue that firms with high (low) cost of debt capital, firms with high (low) opportunity cost, or firms with low (high) E/P ratio are less (more) likely to repurchase their shares. We employ two models with change in basic shares as the dependent variable in the first model, and the difference in dollar amount between sales and share repurchases in the second. Consistent with our prediction, we report that firms with high (low) cost of debt capital are less (more) likely to undertake share repurchases, which is consistent with managing EPS via share repurchases. Also, we document that firms with high discretionary accruals are more likely to repurchase their shares. Added to this, large (small) firms, and firms with high (low) cash flows are more (less) likely to undertake share repurchases.

06-03

Text Mining E-complaints Data from E-auction Store with Implications for Internet Marketing Research

09-06

Data mining aims to excavate new knowledge from existing information. When it comes to text mining, a better way is to take the context into account. Text mining is comprised of skillful database management and advanced computational processes. It allows for organizations to glean more information from data than was originally thought. Data and text mining make it possible for companies to gain pertinent business information from reports and files stored in databases or on the Web. This study seeks to analyze the effectiveness of the text mining process. Complaint forums on various consumer report websites will be analyzed using text and data mining software. Data from feedback forums will be compiled and analyzed using a text miner software program. The relationships and patterns among keywords and their associations will be cluster-analyzed to gain a deeper understanding of the data. The text miner used will be TextAnalyst 2.3 by Megaputer Intelligence. The concept of text mining is relatively new as well. Text mining is a process that is still a work in progress. It involves complex software programs and requires programmers with extensive experience with the software programs. The processes require a skilled programmer to run the data mining software and an experienced consultant to interpret the results. A lack of expertise by either technician will reduce the effectiveness of the information mine. A case study will also be conducted to assay the effectiveness of text mined. The Internet complaint forum, http://www.planetfeeback.com, will be text mined. The decision to use an Internet complaint forum as the case subject was made because of its easy access and reputation as storage medium for large sources of data. The main goal of this study is to gauge the effectiveness of text mining. The complaint forum will be text mined to find relationships. The results will then be analyzed and then interpreted to determine the effectiveness of the text and data mining process.

06-02

Chicago Computer Technology, Inc: Capital Budgeting in the Global Market

09-06

Journal of Finance Case Research, Vol. 8, No. 2

2006

This is a financial case study dealing with an investment decision problem for a small but growing firm in the Chicago area. The case presents a global dimension to international capital budgeting in that the firm, Chicago, Computer Technology, is face with both international economic risk factors as it decides whether to expand its operations to South America. While the cash flow estimation process of the case if fairly straightforward, the complexities of the case arise in the consideration of the less quantitative factors such as political risk, exchange rate risk, and some elements of cultural risk. This is an MBA-level case with a difficulty level of three. It is designed to be taught in three class hours and is expected to require about three hours of outside preparation by students.

06-01

Market Sector Reactions to 9-11: An Event Study

09-06

This study presents an overview of how stocks believed to be most vulnerable to the 9-11 attacks reacted, in particular, in the pre-event period. The insider information theory about pre-knowledge of the attacks is carefully analyzed in both the airlines and the financial services sectors of the market. Standard event study methodologies are used to calculate abnormal returns before and after the attacks. Also, risk-adjusted returns are examined to determine whether investors achieved differential performance during the event period. Expectedly, significant negative excess returns occurred in the airlines and financial services sectors due to the incident. A subsequent reversal of excess returns indicates that markets may have overreacted to the attacks. Uncertainties in energy supply resulted in high but short-lived oil prices. Pre-event negative excess returns in airlines and financial stocks are suggestive of a trading pattern that may have been driven by expectation of an impending anomaly.