Suchergebnisse

"This book provides insights into the hidden role of intuitive expertise in financial decision-making. The authors show and discuss how expertise combined with intuitive judgements positively affect decision-making outcomes. The book builds on the latest academic studies in this emergent field. In combination with the academic perspective the authors provide a field study that they conducted in the context of mergers and acquisitions (M&As), a common and critical strategic investment for companies. The interviews were carried out with experts and decision-makers in large and successful international companies (i.e. M&A experts, CEOs, CFOs and Board members). The book provides a solid theoretical and empirically based grounding of the topic. In addition, it offers suggestions to practitioners on how they can develop and nurture intuitive expertise in strategic investment decision-making. The report of the field study provides examples and quotes from interviews to visualize findings, thus helping practitioners gain understanding and insights from the text. The authors also discuss the downsides of intuitive expertise such as biases and flawed decision-making. For scholars, students and professionals, the book offers a concise and up-to-date summary of an emergent stream of research, exploring how cognition and judgement affect financial decision-making"--

Hospitality. The word steers our attention towards good food, excellent service and perhaps a nice place to rest. Sometimes it refers to the "DNA" or special spirit that characterises those who work in the tourism or hospitality industry. Hospitality carries a positive vibe and has become integrated in promoting the Öresund region as a tourist destination; hygge and fika are attractive concepts. If hygge and fika are understood as metaphors of the hospitable spirit of Scandinavia, or the Öresund region, then the aim of this volume is partly to critically reflect upon those who are invited and those who are excluded. Offering help to people in distress is the most fundamental principle of hospitality -- but how is this idea related to the way in which hospitality is performed in the tourism industry? Using the Öresund region as a laboratory, this collection of essays by researchers within fields such as ethnology, cultural geography, sociology and service studies problematises what hospitality signifies and how it is performed. The reader encounters hospitality in hotels and restaurants, but also flats rented out to temporary visitors; hospitality in small shops, aboard ferries on the Öresund, and aircraft taking visitors to the region. The book moves even further away from the realm of the tourism industry in order to scrutinise events that promote regional development. The critical gaze on hospitality is also developed as the book investigates how the moral imperative to be hospitable was negotiated in a Swedish refugee camp during the Second World War. When combined, the contributions provide an insight into the cultural complexity of hospitality as well as how it is organised, performed and variously understood.

Rock Music challenge hegemonic orders based on class, gender, nation, ethnicity/race or generation. This volume investigates how Rock has played an integral part in the formation of identities and life-styles since the 1950´s. Rock music is used as a wide concept, including different genres e.g. rock'n'roll, pop, punk, hip hop and blues. Unlike most other books on rock music this volume will focus on how rock music becomes a part of everyday life and the formation of identities in a variety

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to provide a paradigmatic reflection on theoretical approaches recently identified in logistics and supply chain management (SCM); namely complex adaptive systems and complexity thinking, and to compare it to the dominant approach in logistics and SCM research, namely the systems approach. By analyzing the basic assumptions of the three approaches, SCM and logistics researchers are guided in their choice of research approaches which increases their awareness of the consequences different approaches have on theory and practice.Design/methodology/approachThe point of departure for the research presented is conceptualization based on literature reviews. Furthermore, years of observations, discussions and empirical studies of logistics operations and management have also influenced the design of this research.FindingsWith a discourse set in relation to the dominant approach in SCM and logistics research, the systems approach, it is concluded that the underlying assumptions of complex adaptive systems and complexity thinking are more appropriate than systems approach for contemporary challenges of organizational complexity in SCM and logistics. It is found that the two complexity‐based approaches can advance SCM and logistics research and practice especially when focusing on innovation, learning and sense‐making.Research limitations/implicationsReflections of underlying assumptions when considering and selecting methodological approaches have implications for research results. This paper provides both a framework for and an analysis of such reflection which contributes to the further development of SCM and logistics research. Future research is needed to empirically provide insights on how complexity approaches can advance the area of SCM and logistics.Practical implicationsFor logistics researchers and practitioners dealing with creativity, innovation, learning and sense‐making and other human‐related aspects, the complexity approaches, with underlying assumptions, presented will provide reflection, inspiration and guidance for further development.Originality/valueThis paper contributes to the further development of SCM and logistics research and practice by providing a reflective analysis and discussion of established and new research approaches with potential benefits for the SCM and logistics community.

The thesis consists of an introduction and four articles that can be read independently of each other. Article 1: "Biodiversity on Swedish pastures: Estimating biodiversity production costs", estimates the costs of producing biological diversity on Swedish permanent grasslands. A simple model is introduced where biodiversity on pastures is produced using grazing animals. In the article, biological diversity is considered a quantitative measure where a given quantity can be produced either by a small area with high quality or a larger area with lower quality. Box-Cox transformations are used in the empirical analysis and the results indicate that the biodiversity production costs differ between the two investigated regions. Article 2: "Transaction Costs and Agri-Environmental Policy Measures: are Preferences Influencing Policy Implementation?", investigates the transaction cost determinants of a Swedish agri-environmental policy measure. The problem is whether unavoidable 'economic factors' drive the transaction costs, or if potentially avoidable 'political factors' have an undue impact. Although initial results indicate that the share of voters voting for particular political configurations influences the level of transaction costs, the extreme bounds analysis shows that only the economic variables are robust with respect to model specifications. Article 3: "Multifunctionality – what does the literature tell us?", surveys the literature on multifunctional agriculture. It is shown i.a. that the level of transaction costs has to be considered when developing policies, that even optimal policies may be controversial from a trade perspective and that the spatial variation both in production and values should be accounted for. Article 4: "Are the Mediterranean countries competitive in fresh fruit and vegetable exports?", investigates the competitiveness of ten Mediterranean countries' fruit and vegetable sectors, utilizing various indicators and the results of a constant market share analysis. The results show that the competitiveness generally has declined in the 1990s and that the countries do not fully utilize their potentials.

It has been shown in previous studies that transaction costs (TC) of agri-environmental policy measures often are very large both in absolute terms and as share of payments. As agri-environmental policy measures make up an increasingly large share of agricultural policies, not least within the European Union, it is becoming ever more important to improve the knowledge about the factors determining the level of transaction costs. This paper investigates the TC determinants of one Swedish agri-environmental policy measure. More specifically, it aims to investigate if the level of TC is attributable to economic factors, such as pasture density and distances, or if political factors, such as lobby groups and political majorities at the county level, influence the costs. To evaluate if the results are robust with respect to alterations in model specifications a version of the extreme bounds analysis is applied. Although initial results indicate that political parties influence the level of transaction costs, the extreme bounds analysis reveals that those results are fragile. It shows that five of the economic variables are robust with respect to model specifications but that none of the political variables is.

PurposeThis paper aims to contribute to the tactical and operational decision making of manufacturing and logistics operations by providing novel insights into modelling and simulation, based on complex adaptive systems (CAS).Design/methodology/approachThe research approach is theoretically based on CAS with agent‐based modelling (ABM) as the implementation method. A case study is presented where an agent‐based model has contributed to increased understanding and precision in decision making at a packaging company in the UK.FindingsThe results suggest that ABM provides decision‐makers with robust and accurate "what‐if" scenarios of the dynamic interplay among several business functions. These scenarios can guide managers in the process of moving from policy space to performance space, i.e. concerning priorities of improvement efforts and choices of production/manufacturing policies, warehouse policies, customer service policies and logistics policies. Furthermore, it is found that ABM can include and pay attention to several aspects of CAS and thus provide understanding of, and explanation for, the patterns and effects which emerge in manufacturing and logistics settings.Practical implicationsAided by agent‐based models and simulations, practitioners' levels of intuition can be enhanced since patterns on the macro level emerge from agents' interactive behaviour. Together with insights from CAS these emergent patterns can be explained and understood, and are thus beneficial for the improvement of decision making in companies.Originality/valueThe case presented distinguishes this paper from what has been written in previous articles on the application of ABM, since such articles have not produced any empirically verified results after implementation of ABM.

Bank Regulation: Effects on Strategy, Financial Accounting and Management Control discusses and problematizes how regulation is affecting bank strategies as well as their financial accounting and management control systems. Following a period of bank de-regulation, the new millennium brought a drastic change, with many new regulations. Some of these are the result of the financial crisis of 2008-2009. Other regulations, such as the introduction in 2005 of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) for quoted companies in the EU, can be related to the introduction of a new global accounting regime. It is evident from annual reports of banks that the number of new regulations in recent years is high and that they cover many different functional areas. The objectives of these regulations are also ambitious; to improve governance and control, contributing to a high level of financial stability for banks. These objectives are obviously of great concern for an industry that directly and indirectly affects the financial situation not only of individuals and organizations but also nation states. Considering the importance of banks in society, it is of little surprise that the attention of both scholars and practitioners has been directed towards how banks comply with new regulations and if the intended objectives of the regulations are met.--

This book is about financial accounting and management control and how these two information systems are related as well as how their objectives conflict. At the most fundamental level, the objective of financial accounting is to provide owners and funders with comparable information on a company's value creation. The aim of management control, on the other hand, is to give the board, senior executives and employees unique information for strategy formulation and implementation. One often-mentioned negative effect is the risk of financial accounting affecting management control design and use, making it less relevant for decision-making at the company level. The book provides an analysis of the complex relationship between financial accounting and management control. The analysis is based on theoretical reasoning as well as several examples of how financial accounting standards affect not only the annual report but also the control system. An interesting, and perhaps unexpected conclusion is that management control seems to affect financial accounting almost as much as financial accounting affects management control. These complex relationships, which can influence the design and use of both financial accounting and management control, are discussed in detail in this book.