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Determines whether gender or other factors account for the export behaviour of small and medium‐sized enterprises in New Brunswick, Canada. Suggests that, although gender does play a role in the nature of small or medium‐sized enterprises in New Brunswick, it is not the primary determinant of export behaviour.

Volume 15 Number 4 of Industrial & Social Relations includes an article by Catherine O'Regan and Clive Thompson entitled “Collective Bargaining and the promotion of equality for women in South Africa”.

This paper deals with the materials flow to the building site and how to make it meet the requirements of right quality, quantity, time and place. It offers a way to systematically map materials flow to the building site and send the right information to the supplier in order to get the right materials to the building site.

Intelligent agents – software components designed to perform complex tasks for the user (with or without the presence of the user) – are used in a variety of settings, from instant messaging and web auctions, to ATM network management and air traffic control systems. The technology also has applicability within libraries, adding a level of user‐oriented control and flexibility to activities such as digital collection management and virtual reference. The use of intelligent agents to assist users with their searches has perhaps the greatest potential. The purpose of this article is to provide background information on the use of agent technology in information settings, and review three library‐based projects that utilize agent technology in a practical way.

A comprehensive literature review combined with brief case studies of practical applications of agent technology in three modern library settings. A conceptual model of a virtual, agent‐based personalized library is also presented.

Librarians and others in the information profession recognize the potential of agent technology within the library setting. The paper presents a number of practical scenarios for using agents, from supporting digital libraries and teaching information literacy to virtual reference.

There are numerous implications for current and future use of agent technology in libraries, including how to engage IT staff in the development process, how to educate users about the benefits of the technology, and how to make sure library professionals have the skill set to allow them to participate in the conceptualization, design and implementation of agents.

There is a wealth of professional literature on agent technology and its uses, mostly from a computing or engineering perspective. This paper has value in that it presents the concept from a library perspective, and includes references to relevant library literature and projects.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of corporate real estate (CRE) ownership on value creation for non‐financial French listed companies.

Using a pool sample composed of SBF 250 companies over the period 1999‐2004, this paper investigates the association between economic value added (EVA) and market value added (MVA) as proxies for the value generated by French listed companies and the proportion of real estate in their asset portfolio.

The empirical results show that an increase in the proportion of real estate assets (over total assets) is negatively associated with EVA, but only for firms in service industries exhibiting low real estate intensity. The regression on MVA shows a negative association with the increase in the proportion of real estate for firms outside the service industries.

Recent trends show that many large companies have sold a significant portion of their CRE assets. The underlying motives for such behaviour are yet to be examined (at least for the French context). If real estate has any influence, an association should be observable between proxies of value creation and the change in the proportion of real estate assets, owned by a company. The results suggest that sales of CRE assets may be driven by value maximizing behaviour.

In order to maximize the value of their firm, managers should apparently take value creation into consideration in their decisions to invest in or dispose of real estate assets.

The paper suggests that in a French context, CRE disposals may generate value added in certain industries with specific CRE intensity.

In this paper, the authors aim to explore how students learn how to learn in a team-based graduate course Designing for Open Innovation using a theoretical framework that focuses on the cognitive functions of team-based processes and team performance.

An automated assessment methodology for the structural and semantic analysis of individual and shared knowledge representations serves as a foundation for the approach. A case study is presented that explores the development of individual mental models and shared mental models over the course.

An assessment of the mental models indicates that in this course three types of learning took place, namely individual learning, team-based learning, and learning from each other.

The automatically generated graphical representations provide insight into the complex processes of the learning-dependent development of individual mental models and shared mental models.

The purpose of this paper is to study the effects of financial accounting standards on the economic decisions of managers. The primary research question addressed in the paper is whether the hedging behavior of corporate treasurers in France has been affected by the issuance of International Accounting Standard No. 39 and International Financial Reporting Standard No. 9 dealing with financial instruments and hedging.

In all, 48 semi-structured interviews were conducted with French corporate treasurers. The interview instrument is included as an exhibit to this paper. The interviews were recorded and transcribed. In addition, three interviews were conducted with representatives of Big 4 audit firms who are experts in accounting for financial instruments. The empirical findings are interpreted using a theoretical framework derived from Jean Baudrillard who argues that the “map” (accounting results) tends to define the “territory” (economic decision-making) in a period of “hyperreality” (when the underlying economic reality is confused). In other words, accounting standards, and the reported numbers that result from such standards, can influence the economic decisions of managers and not merely represent the outcome of economic decisions already taken.

Corporate treasurers often make decisions based on earnings impact. This finding is similar to findings in prior literature regarding the effects of accounting standards on economic decisions taken by managers. A fear of increased earnings volatility is central to the treasurers’ concerns. Also key is the complexity of the process for qualifying financial instruments for hedge accounting treatment. The authors also find that the behavior of corporate treasurers is neither stable nor homogeneous. The behavior appears to be the outcome of a collective learning process in which the corporate treasurer is only one actor.

The type of qualitative research undertaken in this study has its limitations. It cannot be demonstrated that the findings are generalizable. There is a contextual specificity to the treasurer’s function, which reinforces a particular focus on accounting results. The CFO is simultaneously the superior of the treasurer and responsible for financial reporting, and consequently subject to a conflict of interest that does not necessarily apply to other types of managers. Therefore the findings cannot apply to all managerial functions.

The authors found that corporate treasurers focus on accrual-based earnings despite engaging in a function that is supposed to focus on cash flows. Even if the IASB believes that accounting standards should be used primarily by investors and creditors, they should acknowledge that there is a fear of earnings volatility by managers, and that there is an temptation toward increased use of other comprehensive income as an alternative to reporting volatile earnings numbers.

The research provides support for those who argue that international accounting standards that require fair value accounting for financial instruments have had a negative pro-cyclical impact on the real economy.

This paper is a qualitative research study conducted in an area of research where there have previously been only quantitative studies. The access to a large number of French corporate treasurers is unique. The study supports prior findings regarding the influence of accounting standards on managerial behavior, but with an added theoretical interpretation related to Baudrillard’s arguments regarding the nature of the “map” and the “territory” in complex economic systems.