Issue #2 (cont. 1) (Volume 15 2017)

The authors investigate the question of whet her qualitative characteristics are likely to explain the survival of family firms in case of financial distress and whether these variables improve the explanatory power of quantitative variables in clarifying the different probability of distress between family and non-family firms. They focus their attention on the impact of the controlling owner and, using the Socioemotional Wealth theory (SEW), study the role of the family involvement in mitigating or accentuating the likelihood of distress. Using a dataset of 1,137 Italian family and non-family firms during 2004–2013, the authors found that family firms are significantly less likely to incur distress than non-family firms. The board dimension and the number of family members on board affect the probability of distress even controlling for some firm risk characteristics such as beta and ROA volatility, and there is also evidence of a gender mitigating effect in case of a female CEO.

This paper examines the popularity trajectory of outsourcing as a management concept. The paper shows that while outsourcing is an old management practice that has roots that date back centuries, it did not gain widespread popularity as a modern organizational practice until the 1980s. While the initial outsourcing hype and craze of the late 1980s and early 1990s has waned, outsourcing has shown considerable staying power as a management concept, even in the face of counter-movements such as backsourcing and insourcing. Although the experiences with implementation of outsourcing are mixed, outsourcing remains a widely used management concept. However, the current relatively low satisfaction level among users could influence the future popularity trajectory of the outsourcing concept.

The purpose of this research is to study the effect of leadership, organizational support and organizational citizenship behavior on service quality of the Chairman of the study program at the State University of Jakarta. This research used a quantitative approach with a survey method. The research population was Chairmen of the study program of Universities Jakarta. The research sample was 64 Chairmen of the study program selected randomly. Data were obtained from questionnaires and, then, analyzed using descriptive statistics, path analysis and inferential statistics. These results indicate that the Leadership has a direct positive effect on Service Quality, Organizational Support has a direct positive effect on Service Quality, Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB) has a direct positive effect on Service Quality, Leadership has a direct positive effect on Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB), Organizational Support has a direct positive effect on Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB) and the Leadership has a direct positive effect on Organizational Support. Thus, to improve the service quality, the Leadership, as well as the Organizational Support and OCB, should be improved.

The paper analyzes the basic mechanisms of forming the system of global production and sale of vegetables. Factors of the impact of international economic integration on the effectiveness of national agrarian sector’s functioning have been listed. Its importance and necessity for a stable economic development of agricultural enterprises have been determined. The paper examines the cooperation between national economies of different countries with the elimination of trade barriers, the convergence of every country’s markets for the purpose of creating a common market. It generalizes and substantiates the relevant directions of regulating the national vegetable market and integrating agricultural enterprises of vegetable growing branch into world vegetable trade turnover.

At the present stage of economic development Ukrainian public sector is faced with multiple new and complex challenges. In order to implement strategic reforms in the public financial management, the public authorities were given the opportunity to use external sources of finance for the implementation of relevant innovative projects and programs. Accordingly, Ukraine assumes certain international obligations towards the organizational and institutional aspects, as well as transparent and effective targeted use of financial resources. This study examined the main issues of projects and programs at each stage of the project cycle management. The main purpose of this paper is to find the best basic areas for further cooperation between Ukraine and the EU on the implementation of project management in the context of the need to modernize the budget management system.
Methodological and theoretical basis of the research consists of the works of foreign and Ukrainian scholars that allowed realizing conceptual integrity of the study. Methods of generalization and comparison allowed to assess the existing projects of modernization of public financial management financed by international organizations. The authors defined the possible forms of financing of government innovative projects and programs in Ukraine. For this purpose, methods of analysis and synthesis were used.
As a result, it is recommended to follow the directions of further cooperation between Ukraine and the EU on the development of project management along with performance-based budgeting.

This paper presents a comprehensive system of 38 indicators, which allows identification of possible endogenous sources and evaluation of the potential of conflicts of interest arising both at the corporate (in models of ownership, business and financial activities, corporate governance and organizational structures) and operational (analyst) levels of credit rating agencies (CRAs). Testing of proposed system of indicators was carried out based on the content analysis of the public information on the activities of five authorized credit rating agencies of Ukraine.
It is determined that at the beginning of 2017 the most sensitive to the risk of conflicts of interest were “Standard Rating” (74% of threat signals of the total number of indicators), “Expert Rating” (57%) and “Rurik” (37%). The highest potential of conflicts’ of interest escalation was identified in the models of financial activities (80% of threat signals of the total number of indicators of that group) and models of ownership of Ukrainian CRAs (63%).
The estimations of the risk level are proposed to be regarded mainly as signals of the potentially high sensitivity of the particular CRA to the risk of conflicts’ of interest escalation.
Such signals, in particular, can be used by the regulators for carrying out remote monitoring activities of CRAs, for adopting supervisory and regulatory decisions. In turn, managers and owners of rating agencies can conduct a more detailed analysis of the detected potential sources of conflict of interest with the aim of identification, localization, and elimination of shortcomings in the system of conflict of interest management.

The financial system of the advanced countries develops according to two basic models – a bank-based system and a market-based system, depending on the level of protection of the rights of owners, investors and lenders. A paradigm shift in functioning of global financial system and financial systems of all countries is based on financial law, which formalizes all financial relations. Reviewing the financial system of Ukraine, the researchers pay a special attention to public finance due to its substantial share in redistribution of Ukraine’s GDP. A comparative analysis of the concept “financial system” makes it possible to draw a certain analogy with the approaches of experts in financial law. From the economic point of view, a country’s financial system includes three key areas – state finance, household finance and corporate finance, which are closely interrelated. Matching these three spheres with the legal approach, state finance is defined as public finance, while household finance and corporate finance are referred as private finance.
The financial market functions as a part of the financial system. In economic terms, the financial system is a dynamic and open environment, while it implies an intense movement of financial resources, a rapid emergence of new financial instruments and integration into the global financial market. From the legal point of view, the financial system is a static financial and legal phenomenon, which includes centralized and decentralized public funds, as well as funds of business entities and individuals.

The problems of environmental pollution in the conditions of high dust content in the air during the development of coal mines in the territory of the Czech Republic are considered. A mechanism for making managerial decisions was developed using an integrated approach using the new technological process Nastup Tušimice (DNT) aimed at eliminating pollutant emissions and managing workers in dusty conditions in mining operations. The recommendations of active and passive measures aimed at reducing dustiness in the process of coal mining have also been developed.

The main purpose of this study is to find the barriers of benchmarking use in independent full-service restaurants in South Africa. The global restaurant industry entities operate in a highly competitive environment, and restaurateurs should have a visible ad¬vantage over competitors. A competitive advantage can be achieved only if the quality standards in terms of food and beverage products, service quality, relevant technology and price are comparable to the industry leaders. This study has deployed a descriptive, quantitative research design on the basis of a relatively large sample of restaurateurs. The data was collected through the SurveyMonkey website using a standardised questionnaire The questionnaire was mailed to 2699 restaurateurs, and 109 respondents returned fully completed answer sheets. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the data. The main findings were as follows: 43% of respondents had never done benchmarking; only 5.5% respondents considered themselves as highly knowledgeable about benchmarking; respondents thought that the most significant barriers to benchmarking were difficulties with obtaining exemplar (benchmarking partner) best-practice information and adapting the anomalous (own) practices to derive a benefit from best practices. The results of this study should be used to shape the knowledge about benchmarking practices in order to develop suitable solutions for the problems in South African restaurants.

This study examines the influence of trust, communication and commitment, that have on ethical behavior in universities in the Gauteng province of South Africa. Three hypotheses are posited in this research. The empirical test of hypotheses based on a sample data set of 450 respondents from universities in the Gauteng province of South Africa was provided. IBM SPSS statistics 24.0 and IBM SPSS Amos 24.0 software were used to analyze the data. The results indicate that trust, communication and commitment positively influence ethical behavior in universities. Drawing from the study’s findings, managerial implications are discussed and limitations and future research directions are suggested. This study contributes new knowledge to the existing body of ethical behavior literature and organizational behavior theories in Africa.

This research sought to ascertain those job characteristics that influence teacher motivation, which may result in improved pass rates for learners in Ibadan South-West Local Government, Nigeria. Descriptive, bivariate, and multivariate statistical analytic methods were employed to determine the relationships between job characteristics and obstacles to teaching and learning, on the one hand; and respondents’ profile, on the other. For the purpose of the research, 456 teachers were surveyed with the aid of a structured questionnaire. Relatively young teachers were surveyed (87%), with females dominating the sample. The results suggest that while salary, career opportunities and duties and responsibilities respectively take central stage in motivating the participants, other job characteristics variables (such as supervision/leadership) do not exert the same effect. Furthermore, the results also show that the lack of resources related to learning and research, and the lack of recognition/reward are deemed as the dominant obstacles in meeting teaching and learning goals, while non-transparent culture is viewed as an insignificant obstacle. A major implication of the findings is that to achieve a sustainable improvement in student performance, a systematic improvement in teachers’ job related factors would be needed.

This article provides a new perspective on sustainable marketing strategies in the context of a globalized clothing and textile (C&T) sector in Zimbabwe by linking two diverse streams of literature, namely, globalization and marketing strategy. A quantitative approach was adopted to obtain data from 127 respondents using a two-stage cluster sample. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) confirmed three of four hypothesized relationships, namely that integrated co-alliances, modern technology and national policy impact the sustainability of clothing and textile sector in Zimbabwe. The adoption of a standardized marketing strategy characterized by uniform application of the marketing mix elements with minor modifications will have a significant impact on the capacity of the C&T sector to withstand the adverse effects of globalization. The research extends the body of existing knowledge on marketing strategy in the context of globalization of Zimbabwe’s C&T sector, and argues empirically for a new approach to developing and implementing competitive marketing strategies. The research findings will enable companies in the C&T sector of a developing economy to craft competitive marketing strategies, which incorporate internal company capabilities and technology, and also recognize the role of national policy in the globalization discourse.